Surround Audio via HTML

For more than twenty years, I have been searching for an effective way to distribute audio artworks as true surround sound experiences. Early projects, such as those created with Gashoagie, relied on DVDs encoded with Dolby surround formats. DVD-Audio offered another possibility, but both approaches were expensive to produce, manufacture, and distribute. More recently, streaming platforms have begun supporting Dolby Atmos music, but uploading and distribution remain costly, and these services generally do not support the integration of video in the way many of my works require. Recently, I discovered a surprisingly accessible solution: delivering Dolby Atmos audio through HTML using Safari on macOS and iOS. This approach is free to distribute, supports both full multichannel speaker systems and Apple AirPods, and allows immersive audio and video to coexist within a web-based artwork.

These early experiments demonstrate two different approaches to web-based immersive audio. Steps uses a static image paired with spatialized Foley recordings of footsteps moving through a surround sound field, emphasizing the listener’s perception of movement and position through sound alone. In contrast, Effexor Loss combines motion imagery with FM synthesis techniques used to create sounds reminiscent of rubber friction and insect-like activity. Together, these works serve as technical and artistic proofs of concept, exploring how browser-based Dolby Atmos delivery can support immersive audiovisual experiences without requiring specialized software, physical media, or proprietary distribution platforms.