OSCILLA

Oscilla is an open-source platform for creating and performing animated, cue-driven graphic scores in the browser. Scores are authored as SVG documents and executed as synchronized, networked performance environments.

Oscilla integrates timing, animation, media control, and OSC output into a single browser-native score engine.

Documentation

Start here:

https://robcanning.github.io/oscilla/docs/

The documentation includes:

• Complete cue reference
• Animation and transformation syntax
• Authoring workflow (Inkscape → browser)
• System architecture
• Cheatsheets and examples

Core Cue System

Oscilla uses a cue-driven execution model. Cues are embedded directly in SVG IDs and are evaluated in real time during score playback.

Available Cue Types

Timing & Navigation

• pause() — pause playback
• stop() — halt playback
• nav() — navigation and mode control
• page() — page-based score navigation
• stopwatch() — time display and control
• metronome() — tempo reference

Media & Sound

• audio() — audio file playback
• synth() — browser-based synthesis
• video() — video playback

OSC & External Control

• osc() — OSC message output
• oscCtrl() — OSC routing and control

Interaction & Structure

• button() — interactive UI elements
• propagate() — propagate cue state
• reuse() — reuse cue definitions
• text() — timed and sequenced text
• fade() — fade visual or UI elements

Full syntax and parameters for each cue are documented here:
Cue Documentation

Animation System

Oscilla supports continuous and discrete animation directly tied to score timing.

Animation Namespaces

• scale() — uniform or non-uniform scaling
• rotate() — continuous or stepped rotation
• o2p() — object-to-path traversal

Animations can be:

• time-based or duration-based
• looped, alternating, or one-shot
• nested and combined
• synchronized across clients

Animation syntax is documented here:
Animation Cheatsheet

What Kind of System Is Oscilla?

Oscilla is a modular score execution platform combining:

• cue-based timing and control
• animated graphic notation
• networked synchronization (WebSockets / OSC)
• browser-native media playback

It is designed for composers and performers working with animated, spatial, and networked scores.

The system is described in:

R. Canning, OscillaScore: A Modular Platform for Graphic Notation in Networked Music Performance,
Proceedings of the International Conference on Technologies for Music Notation and Representation (TENOR), Beijing, 2025.