Quite a crazy couple of weeks to report, but calm prevails here at Hilltop today.  (For late, arrivals, “Hilltop” is the name we gave our home, partially in honor of Beatrix Potter, whose home was “Hill Top” and we live at the top of a modest hill.) A great number of deer continue to populate our land, and all the fawns have grown up; the bucks are now developing huge antlers, how magnificent. They have not learned to be afraid of humans and practically come right up to me. As things dry up or freeze up, I will be putting out dried corn for them and plenty of seeds for the birds and squirrels.

I finally completed the third movement of my second symphony and posted a mockup of it here on my site. Just go to the top of the page and click on “Symphony No. 2 Bonus Videos” and scroll down (or listen to all three movements).  There is one more movement to write. Meanwhile, I have been working with Parma Recordings (who did my album The Sea Knows) about recording the symphony on a new album during 2020 for release in 2021.  These things take time.  Details will be posted here.

Some composers, like Beethoven, get a bust of their head and shoulders. I do not aspire to such glory.  But my friend, the Renaissance man Deron Martel has created a cast and bronze sculpture for the ages of my hand holding a pencil. These photos were taken along the way. He came over and took a rubber mold, so it is actually my own right hand in all detail.  I have naturally nicknamed it “Thing” after the hand in The Addams Family, and when done it will reside proudly on the shelf in my composing studio. Perhaps someday, upon my demise, it can be brought to a white elephant sale party.  Talk to the hand!

I’m continuing to do radio interviews and starting to do some TV about the book.  Here are a couple of links:

The Kyle Heimann Show nationally on Redeemer Radio:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FYRdHs-X6AY&feature=youtu.be

Or tune in live to Sheila Liaugminas on Relevant Radio at 5 p.m. CST tomorrow, Nov. 8 (and will be archived after):

https://relevantradio.com/listen/our-shows/a-closer-look/

That’s all for this diary entry.  For music this week, I invite you to hear movement three of the new symphony at the above “Symphony No. 2, Bonus Videos” link, and scroll down to the bottom video.