Jennifer Brookes: There’s a small amusement park at the base of Seattle’s space needle. It’s called Fun Forest. I’ve walked through it many times (three, four, maybe seven or eight), and each time, the merry-go-round is the only active ride. Granted, I only frequent this part of the city at night, so not only is the park nearly deserted, it is dark, and the darkness is swift. I showed up around 6:15 PM on October 9th, thinking I could shoot this week’s piece in perfect evening light and get out of there quickly (it’s getting cold here). However, the creepy carnival music coming from the merry-go-round was enchanting; I walked away from it and inattentively explored the deserted rides. The sound held me spellbound until it stopped, which is when I realized it was dark, I was alone, the few kids who were riding the stationary horses were gone, and I had a stop-motion piece to shoot.

Eric Peterson: The history of a particular instrument is fascinating: when it was created, by whom, who were its owners, where was it played? Etc. This is more obvious for rock bands who use vintage equipment, but I think it’s equally interesting for that piano you have sitting around in your living room. For instance, did you know that the piano used in this week’s recording was the same one Jenny played when she was growing up? Her mother played it when she was growing up, too. And now, it’s been used in this context for this project. (Thanks, Jenny’s mom.) I used to write songs by setting up my recording equipment, hitting record, and playing whatever came to mind. I took the same improvisational approach this week: first takes.