Innovative Austin Show Now Available Online

I first met Tyagaraja Welch in 2008 in Houston, when we were both up for a Houston Press Music Award for Best Unclassifiable Band. Welch, whose music combined electronic and yoga practices, decorated the stage before his performance with large paper flowers. When I went on after him, I ate them, but that’s not critical to the rest of the story. The point is, for 17 years people have not really been able to quantify the man.

Now based in Austin, Welch has continued to innovate on stage and in music, shedding what traditional pop music style he had and fully embracing performance art. Thus far, his magnum opus is Bridging With Mother, a bizarre but compelling meshing of music, videography, dance, and yoga that explores humanity’s relationship with nature and movement. Much of the footage shown onstage was shot during Welch’s visits to Mendicino, California amidst cliffs, waterfalls, and the ocean.

“Those images are so powerful,” he says. “This is where our soul is born from. You can’t watch it and not feel the birth of your soul. I want to inspire people to go out and seek nature somewhere.” 

Welch recently released Bridging With Mother on YouTube for wider audience appeal. Originally shot over four performances at the Vortex in Austin in 2024, the work is surprisingly powerful even on a laptop screen. Welch appears on stage managing the electronica aspects with occasional backup from a live guitarist. For some songs he is joined by his longtime partner, Gunjen Mittal, who dances interpretively. 

In practice, the show is reminiscent of one of the late David Lynch’s most esoteric works, Industrial Symphony No. 1. Filmed at Brooklyn Academy of Music in New York City in 1989, it’s a bizarre collection of nude dancers, factory fires, and the music of Julee Cruise. Welch was delighted at the comparison. 

“I want people to immerse in the show,” he says. “As an actor at the Univrsity of St. Thomas in Houston, I quit because I wanted to say my own words. I don’t like the wall between actors and the audience. Bridging means union or conjunction, but in theater it’s merging with the show.” 

The music in Bridging With Mother was all composed specifically for the show, either by Welch solo or through his current band Light Wheel. Planning for it began during COVID, and Welch began debuting parts of the program on Austin public access television.

It’s likely that Bridging With Mother would not exist without the specific resources offered by the city of Austin. Welch signed up for film classes at the Austin Film Society, learning everything from cinematography to editing and participating in their equipment loan program. When he was ready to stage the show for a live audience, it was with a Nexus Grant from Austin Thrive, an initiative started by the city to promote local art.

“Bridging the Mother stood out for its commitment to centering diverse artistic voices and integrating multidisciplinary art forms that preserve indigenous traditions,” says Carlos Soto, Public Information & Marketing Program Manager in the Economic Development Department. “The project incorporates a fusion of classical Indian and contemporary dance with stage design, visual art, and music to explore themes of sustainability, cultural preservation, and mindful environmental stewardship. Additionally, it engages audiences on multiple sensory levels through live performances, Ayurvedic snacks, and herbal elements, reinforcing how art can inspire compassion and action.”

Video footage is the most intriguing part of show. In the YouTube video version, the video aspect is almost always layered over the stage show, creating a dreamlike space where Welch’s exploration of nature is present like a kind of wordless narration. Though much of it is from his California jaunts, some comes from Austin, particularly underwater footage.

“That’s from the Springs,” Welch says. “It used to be called Barton Springs, but now we just call it The Springs because Barton was a notorious Indian killer. I wanted to honor to Austin, though.”

Currently, Welch is working on a sequel to Bridging With Mother that he hopes to have completed within the next year and staged, again, in Austin. It’s a remarkable evolution from a man that started off as an eccentric but understandable rising pop-rock star into something that transcends conventional performance through nature. 

But it’s not all different. I looked closely at the footage and spotted Welch’s paper flowers on the stage again, exactly as they were when we were sharing a stage in Houston.

“I still do the flowers,” he says, laughing. “I put my intentions into every one of them.”