WAAX: Web Audio API eXtension

The introduction of the Web Audio API in 2011 marked a significant advance for web-based music systems by enabling real-time sound synthesis on web browsers simply by writing JavaScript code. While this powerful functionality has arrived there is a yet unaddressed need for an extension to the API to fully reveal its potential. To meet this need, a JavaScript library dubbed WAAX was created to facilitate music and audio programming based on Web Audio API bypassing underlying tasks and augmenting useful features. In this paper, we describe common issues in web audio programming, illustrate how WAAX can speed up the development, and discuss future developments.