Adding music to a comic?

[RobboAKAscooby]

I was just curious if there was a way to add music to a comic page and if so how?

[Phalanx]

You embed a music file in the page.

But if my memory serves me right, it's not encouraged for CG.

And to be honest, it's a really really really bad idea to add music unless you have a really really really good reason to do so.

[W M]

You embed a music file in the page.

But if my memory serves me right, it's not encouraged for CG.

And to be honest, it's a really really really bad idea to add music unless you have a really really really good reason to do so.

And, if you decide to, do NOT use a large filetype (such as an mp3); instead, use some along the lines of a MIDI file. (this will save your page's load time from utter destruction)

[RobboAKAscooby]

Cool thanks, I honestly have no idea whether I'll be adding sound at any point.
I was just planning a future storyline and couldn't get a certain tune out of my head.

[Wendybird]

It's actually impossible to put sound on a CG page, as far as I know. If you do decide to coordinate sound with a comic, you'd have to link to an outside source anyway, so the reader would have to click. This would stop it from affecting load times for the comic.

I looked into doing some narration for a section of my comic, and figured out that recording onto a free podcasting site and then posting a link would be the best way (but I decided not to do it). This is probably the best option for original material. With someone else's song, if it's not available for free online you're probably not allowed to put it on your site anyway. If it is, link away.

[RobboAKAscooby]

Yeah I probably won't be doing it but I still get the song in my head when I think about the storyline.

Coming from a film and video background I'm used to using sound as an additional storytelling tool.

[Koad]

You might be interested in this comic. I'm not a big fan of it to be honest, but it does include music and sound effects.

[Mercury Hat]

The easiest way to do music would be to link to a youtube video of the song; I've seen a few comics do that before. If you knew flash, you could do it that way, too.

The problem with embedding music is a lot of people don't like a site automatically playing music. It's annoying. Giving someone the option of playing it is better, or at least warning them about it.

Actually the most interesting way of incorporating music I've seen didn't have the music file at all. Starting here, this comic used "Sympathy for the devil" and lined up the action beat for beat. If you have a copy of the song, listen to it while reading.

[RobboAKAscooby]

Thanks for the ideas people.

[Guildmaster Van]

My recommendation?
Making a music player with Adobe Flash.

Nothing complicated - just a simple bar with different musical options, plus the most important option of all: turning the damn thing off in case your reader doesn't share your musical interest. After that you can put it anywhere on your page - although the majority of websites using a Flash based music player stick it in their header.

Definitely use mp3 or higher quality for your music in the Flash player, but don't use full songs. Stick to loops or smaller tracks, because you don't really want your Flash player to exceed 1MB

[MSPcomix]

Let the readers choose their own soundtrack. Everyone has different tastes in music, and what may compliment the art for one person may not compliment the work for another. We may be in the digital age, but unless you're going to go all out and do an animation, don't bother with the music. It's too gimmicky. Marvel once put out a graphic novel with a soundtrack CD by that guy who tried to rescore Night of the Living Dead with a synthesizer. The book didn't sell too well.

[elkarlos]

Letting the reader choose the soundtrack seems a little pointless, all they would have to do is fire up Itunes or Winamp in the background with their music while browsing comics. Their personal choices in music would not necessarily fit the mood of the comic.

Some pages and story arcs are best accompanied by the music which inspired them; I would love to have a way to embed songs into my pages. Having a soundtrack of the artist's choosing to accompany the action would make the experience even better, especially during emotionally charged events.

[Killbert-Robby]

Some pages and story arcs are best accompanied by the music which inspired them; I would love to have a way to embed songs into my pages. Having a soundtrack of the artist's choosing to accompany the action would make the experience even better, especially during emotionally charged events.

No freakin' way. Forcing someone's computer to play a song is basically raping the speakers and their ears. You can say, hey, I listened to this music while I made this, they're a great artist, check it out, but your work should REAAAAALLY be able to stand on it's own. There's a reason comicbooks aren't made like those tacky singing birthday cards.

[VinnieD]

I agree. When music starts playing without the user's consent it's a good way to get them to dive for the X. If you want to do a multimedia presentation, then it's time to get into flash animation. Comics aren't what you're looking for.

[Fishies]

On my last computer embedded music would make the browser die. Thus I hated any page that did it with the power of a thousand firey suns. (Sadly this was also the age of geocities).

Anyway. Comics tend to have issues with loading fast enough for reading as it is (depending on the file) so adding music is treading very dangerous ground. You could always make a page in the Extras with that lists and links to your intended soundtrack, though? Thus it's there for those interested, but not intrusive.

[RobboAKAscooby]

On my last computer embedded music would make the browser die. Thus I hated any page that did it with the power of a thousand firey suns. (Sadly this was also the age of geocities).

Anyway. Comics tend to have issues with loading fast enough for reading as it is (depending on the file) so adding music is treading very dangerous ground. You could always make a page in the Extras with that lists and links to your intended soundtrack, though? Thus it's there for those interested, but not intrusive.

I've pretty much abandoned the idea of adding music but that's not a bad idea.