Tone.js
A Web Audio framework for interactive music in the browser, with a global transport, synths and effects. Part of Open-source motion studio: 20 repos.
Checked 2026-10-27 against the GitHub repository, its README, and the npm or PyPI registry where relevant.
| Runtime | Browser (Web Audio API). |
| How an agent drives it | Library API in code. Real-time by default; rendering to a file needs Tone.js offline rendering or a captured audio stream. |
| License | MIT. |
| Maintenance | Latest release 15.1.22, 2026-07-12; repo pushed 2026-10-25; not archived. |
What it gives you
- Input: code such as
new Tone.Synth().toDestination(); synth.triggerAttackRelease('C4', '8n'). Output: audio through the Web Audio API. - DAW-style features: a global transport for scheduling, prebuilt synths and effects, and building blocks for custom instruments.
Key differentiator
Musical scheduling and synthesis on top of Web Audio: a transport, tempo-aware time and ready instruments. Source: README.
Pick something else when
Howler.js (MIT) for playing sound files. The raw Web Audio API for a few simple effects. Strudel (AGPL-3.0) for live-coded patterns. A sample library or a catalog of sound effects when you only need ready sounds, such as the /media-use skill in HyperFrames.
Agent fit
Weak to moderate. Useful for synthesised stings and tones; most generated video needs recorded audio files rather than synthesis.
Overlap with the rest of the stack
Complements Chatterbox (speech); no overlap with the visual libraries.