Is it me, or did this year feel like a decade?
Each week brought a slew of changes that upended past precedent. The industry I’ve spent 30-plus years of my life in was attacked as being “radical” and “monsters.” But it was heartening, in July, to see our Texas Public Radio audience respond to a historic clawback of allocated federal funding with local, sustained support for our news and classical music programming. The outpouring of support helps us strengthen and grow our service to the community, and we remain steadfast in our mission.
Back at home, with both kids off to college, I thought I’d have more free time to devote to watching and reading. Instead, I found myself busier than ever in the evenings, catching up on work, practicing more piano, and trying to stay somewhat fit in my fifties.
With that framework, here are some of the things I’ll remember from this year.
Interviewing Cary Elwes on stage: On March 1, actor Cary Elwes appeared on stage at the Tobin Center for the Performing Arts to present “An Inconceivable Evening” with a screening of The Princess Bride. Following the movie, I was the lucky guy who got to interview Elwes onstage, asking him about his memories and fun insights into the making of this family classic. Elwes was a great storyteller, a sweetheart of a guy, and even signed my son’s Blu-ray copy of the movie.
Sinners: I’m not normally a horror movie fan, but I do love blues music, a good period piece, and classic vampire mythology. So my favorite movie of the year was Ryan Coogler’s Sinners, about twin brothers in the 1930s who open a juke joint in their Mississippi hometown, only to be confronted by a clan of vampires intent on stealing the patrons’ lifeforce and talent. There’s an intermingling of race and culture that is steeped in history in this movie. The music, both the blues and the film’s score, is amazing.
'Tron' at Disney: I’ve been a fan of Tron since my 9-year-old, video game-obsessed self first laid eyes on “the grid” in 1982, so it was a thrill to finally experience just a bit of the world of Tron in person in May as we visited Walt Disney World and got to ride the Tron Lightcycle/Run coaster. Just 90 seconds long, it’s a speedy but smooth ride, scored to the Daft Punk music that helped make Tron: Legacy such a memorable movie. While at Disney we were also celebrating…
Graduation/Anniversary: Our son Maximilian graduated from high school, which officially landed us in “empty nester” status, while wife Renata and I celebrated our 25th wedding anniversary with the kids at Epcot, dining at Les Chefs de France. My son, daughter and I tried escargot for the first time. It was gummy. But the buttons we wore announcing the anniversary and graduation celebrations netted us free dessert there, and at several other locations in the parks. Thanks, Mickey!
Cinema Tuesdays turns 25: Thank you to all of the wonderful Cinema Tuesdays fans who’ve made a passion project at TPR into a signature event for twenty-five years! It’s been a treat to share classic movies on the big screen—the way they were meant to be seen—with you, and we look forward to bringing more great cinema to San Antonio in 2026!
Agarita's Four Seasons: In early September, the innovative San Antonio chamber ensemble Agarita enlisted some friends and leveled up to an 11-piece act to perform Max Richter’s “Recomposed: Vivaldi’s Four Seasons.” The music is a beautiful reimagining of Vivaldi’s classic concerti, where key melodies from Vivaldi’s original works are stretched, compressed, edited or elongated, but are always there informing the new music, which has a distinctive minimalist vibe to it. You can listen to the full performance in the audio player below.
San Antonio Radio Hall of Fame: This year I was honored by the San Antonio Society of Radio Broadcasters for 30+ years of service in public media by being inducted to the San Antonio Radio Hall of Fame. It was a special experience shared with friends and family, and I was honored to be in this year’s class alongside folks like gospel radio’s Darrell Lewis, and classic rock icons Winston & Alyce. I still have plenty more years of radio left in me, too!
Haim: I think I must have blurted out loud “Who are they?!?” when I first saw Haim perform on the 2021 Grammy Awards telecast. I was late to the party by 8 years, as they were already on their third album, but after that thrilling TV gig, I vowed to see them live in concert. Four years later, I got the chance in Austin as the band played the Moody Center, touring behind their latest album, “I Quit,” which is largely a middle finger salute to past loves and loss. Their records have a pop gloss to them, but in concert, Haim rocks hard, playing multiple instruments and firing up the crowd. Put them on your radar.
Marty Stuart: While at the Haim concert, my friend Brian asked me, “Who’d you like to see next?” and I responded that I had never seen Marty Stuart live, and even missed his last show in the area when he played at the Brauntex Theater. Well, I must have manifested something because the next week, there was an ad online for a show at the Stable Hall featuring Marty Stuart and his Fabulous Superlatives! I showed up at the door, got the last ticket in the house, and enjoyed a tight 95-minute set that was full of great musicianship, from Stuart’s originals, drawing on rock, country, and psychedelia, to covers of classic country ballads like Marty Robbins’ “El Paso,” sung in three-part harmony.
BONUS: I was almost as excited to see Marty Stuart's guitar in person as I was to see him perform on it. It's a 1956 Telecaster once owned and modified by the late Clarence White of The Byrds to be able to more easily emulate steel guitar licks. Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/B-Bender
Paul McCartney: What can I say but this was likely my kids’ first and last chance to see Paul McCartney in concert, so the whole family went to the show. We sat in the upper deck and enjoyed his nearly three-hour set featuring all the great hits you’d expect plus a few surprises like Wings’ “Nineteen Hundred and Eighty-Five.” At the end of the night, McCartney’s voice could barely hit the notes in “Helter Skelter,” but I was still glad to have been there. The band was fantastic, and even though I knew it was coming, I got a little emotional when McCartney played the "duet" with John Lennon on "I've Got a Feeling." I would like to hereby apologize to my alma mater Trinity University for ditching our 30-year reunion that night, but I only did so for a Beatle.
Jennifer McNichols, in memoriam: One of my close college friends, Jennifer McNichols, passed away suddenly in November. She was a talented artist and crafter (her shop is still online), and a devout fan of The Cure. Crank up Disintegration and shop a small vendor this weekend in her honor.
Margo Price: I’ve written before about Margo Price, who’s pretty much my favorite country voice on the scene today because of her classic sound infused with equal parts Loretta Lynn and Tom Petty, and her direct, stick-it-to-the-man lyrics. It’s hard to believe it’s been nine years since I saw Price performing on the big stage at Floore’s. This November, she returned for an intimate set inside the bar, where we were literally steps away from the stage. "Give that woman a Grammy!" someone in the crowd yelled. I can't agree more, and she's up for two awards at the next ceremony.
Other things I liked this year? Paul Thomas Anderson's movie One Battle After Another, the Selena Gomez collab with Oreo (delicious cinnamon), gathering the courage to ride the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror for the first time, hearing and seeing the young Poiesis Quartet in concert, and finally trying the Scrub Daddy—a GAME CHANGER when it comes to cleaning dishes. What did you enjoy in 2025? Email me anytime at ncone@tpr.org or find me on Threads @ncone1.
Happy New Year!
Nathan Cone
