Dear Members of the Disquiet Junto,

First up, if you’re in Scotland (Glasgow, Edinburgh, St. Andrews), or London or Oxford, or thereabouts — I know, it’s a lot of thereabouts — lemme know. I might be in your neighborhood this summer at some point. (Last year, some readers of this note may recall, there was a similar plan, but it evaporated. This year’s is looking good, though I likely won’t get as far north as I’d hoped, and time will be limited.)

Second, thanks to everyone who joined in the project last week, as part of our ongoing collaboration with Musikfestival Bern in Bern, Switzerland, and thanks as well to Tobias Reber for the invitation. This year is the eighth consecutive year the Disquiet Junto has worked with the festival, and last week’s project was the first of four projects we’re doing over the next few months based on this year’s festival theme, “Blitz” (as in “lightning”).

And that covers it. This week’s project is below. Like the recent snail one, it was inspired by a trip to the Marin Headlands.

And thanks, as always, for your generosity with your time, creativity, and curiosity.

Best from San Francisco,

Marc Weidenbaum
marc@disquiet.com

. . .

Disquiet Junto Project 0753: 5 Minute Wait
The Assignment: Write outdoors hold music for a single-lane tunnel entrance delay.

Perhaps you’ve experienced the pleasures of a single-lane, two-way tunnel yourself. They way they are usually situated is that there is a signal for when you can go through, and for when you can’t. Traffic proceeds in one direction, leaving enough time at the end of the cycle for all vehicles to pass. Then after a pause, the direction changes. At the tunnel where this project’s cover photo was shot, the phase for each direction is five minutes, and at each end there is a warning sign about the wait. The sign reads “5 Minute Red Light.”

Now, imagine you were commissioned to write “outdoors hold music” for the delay experienced by drivers at either end of the tunnel. Consider the circumstances of the delay for automobile drivers and their passengers. Now, record a five-minute piece that fulfills that creative brief.

Bonus if you record the track in a manner that reproduces the sense of it being heard outdoors — and, perhaps better yet, from inside a parked vehicle.

Note: Cover photo shot at the Headlands Center for the Arts in Marin County, California.

Tasks Upon Completion:

Label: Include “disquiet0753” (no spaces/quotes) in the name of your track.

Upload: A person participating in the Disquiet Junto should post only one track per weekly project (SoundCloud account preferred but not required). If on occasion you feel inspired to post more than one track (whether to a single account or across multiple accounts), you should clarify which is the “main” rendition for consideration by fellow members and (if on SoundCloud) for inclusion in the SoundCloud playlist.

Share: Post your track and a description/explanation at https://llllllll.co/t/disquiet-junto-project-0753-5-minute-wait/

Discuss: Listen to and comment on the other tracks.

Additional Details:

Length: The length is up to you, though five minutes sort of makes the most sense for this one.

Deadline: Monday, June 8, 2026, 11:59pm (that is: just before midnight) wherever you are.

About: https://disquiet.com/junto/

Newsletter: https://juntoletter.disquiet.com/

License: It’s preferred (but not required) to set your track as downloadable and allowing for attributed remixing (i.e., an attribution Creative Commons license).

Please Include When Posting Your Track:

More on the 753rd weekly Disquiet Junto project, 5 Minute Wait — The Assignment: Write outdoors hold music for a single-lane tunnel entrance delay — disquiet.com/0753.