Phra Chenduriyang (Piti Wathayakon)

Phra Chenduriyang (Piti Vādyakara ) (, ; born as Peter Feit, (July 13, 1883 – December 25, 1968) was a Thai composer, conductor, music professor, collector and arranger. He was the son of a German American immigrant, Jacob Feit, and a Mon mother. However, he never left Thailand and identified himself solely as Thai. He composed the Thai National Anthem.

Feit's father Jacob, who was also a musician, had arrived in Siam (the former name of Thailand) during the reign of King Rama V (Chulalongkorn) and became a trumpet teacher at the royal court. Feit studied piano and western string instruments with his father and at the Assumption College, Bangkok. In 1917, he joined the Royal Entertainment Department and formed the first western-style orchestra in Siam. King Rama VI (Vajiravudh) appointed him deputy director, later director of the "Royal Western string orchestra" and granted him the feudal title and name of Phra Chenduriyang (translating to "skilled with musical instruments"). Phra Chenduriyang was primarily responsible for the spread of Western classical music in Siam, teaching many young Thais. His Western orchestra became a core component of the Fine Arts Department, a government agency established by the revolutionaries. In 1939, during Thaification in Thailand, he adopted the Thai name Piti Vādyakara. Between 1940 and 1950 he was a professor of music at the Silpakorn University, Bangkok. Among his students were King-to-be Bhumibol Adulyadej, Eua Sunthornsanan, Wet Sunthonjamon, Sa-nga Arampir and Saman Kanchanaphalin.

Phra Cheduriyang died of heart failure in Bangkok on 25 December 1968, at the age of 85. He had six children and 20 grandchildren.