Music for Panoramic virtual tours by Virtual Surfers

Panoramic virtual tours are made with stitching software. They are meant to present a landmark, building, room, or object from all 360 degree angles. Used to advertise for example, hotels, houses, museums, and shops, they project views very similar to the way in which dancers twirl and travel across different spaces.

Panoramic photography is becoming more and more important in the business world. Do you wish to sell your house? Chances are that you will perceive more potential buyers if they have a better idea of the layout of the rooms and how they connect. One particular company that specializes on panoramic virtual tours is Virtual Surfers GmbH, with offices in Munich. Its Managing Directors, Stephan and Christina von Bressensdorf have been experimenting with this kind of photography since 2002, and we are happy to include them among our clients.

For a Panoramic virtual tours of the Lindner Hotels in Munich, they used the completely royalty free track “Piano Athmosphere” (C: Andres Lutz)  from the Proud Music Library.

The Pros and Cons of Background Music on Websites

To use or not to use background music on websites: that is the question. Although some people might argue that music is only nuisance and parallel to “acoustic pollution”, there is evidence that can prove otherwise. Yes, you read right. True: For those who simply want to find information on the web, music proves to be an added element that makes it hard to multitask. Nevertheless, nowadays there is an added entertainment value that cannot be ignored. The interplay of ambience and effect has an impact on emotions and thus, the decision-making process. Furthermore, in a world where video games have come to encourage the desire for immediate gratification, reading texts is time consuming and tedious. Music plays an important role in advertising, since it sets the mood and serves as fast and effective messaging.

Naturally, not all websites require music, and in some cases it is even discouraged. Although music should be functional, web design is just as important. Take for example news sites, where music would disturb the actual task at hand, namely reading the news. Therefore, it is recommendable to add music only if there is an appropriate application area or where creating an effect would help in the transmission of information; otherwise rely on a good web design. At the end of this discussion, you will find excellent examples from clients who successfully used background music on their websites. The fusion of information and emotion was particularly well done. Towards this goal, the Proud Music Library offers thousands of hand-picked titles that have been proved applicable by our Artist and Repertoire Management.

We are both happy and proud to be able to present you with successful projects of integrating music to websites from our clients on our blog! By the way, this is not by any means the last blog entry about background music; there are more to come.

Artofdan/Daniel Fehr

Andreas Holnburger, interior designer