Polyphonic texture is when you have two or more voices playing independently of each other, with different rhythms, melodies, and harmonies, yet in a complimentary way. Some people would simplify this down into 'harmony', but polyphonic texture is different than that. Each of these lines can be thought of as a. There are a lot of technical aspects of polyphonic music too, like polyphonic texture, for instance. Polyphony is a musical texture that features two or more equally prominent melodic lines played at the same time. It really does have a very fascinating history, which you did a good job of tying in to this article. I recently became interested in learning more about the history of polyphonic music after a friend turned me on to Gregorian chant and music. In fact, polyphonic music was considered the devil’s music by the church for a time because it uses forbidden modes and instruments that clash against secular music rules and pagan rites. 'The center of polyphonic music in Europe after 1150 was.'Īny music buffs out there who can help me out? For decades, the medieval church considered polyphonic music to be lascivious, frivolous, impious, and evil until the end of the fourteenth century. Homework question for you all - I've got a fill in the blank question: I will say, heterophony is certainly an acquired taste, but one well worth cultivating. However, it's so rarely used that heterophony sounds 'weird' to most Westerners when they first hear it. This is much more common in Asian music, especially Japanese Gagaku and traditional Thai and Filipino music, but some Western composers do make use of it. This is the kind of sound where you have two voices (or more) doing a simultaneous variation on a melody line. Polyphonic and monophonic are two musical terms that you might have heard if you’re new to producing music. Another interesting contrast to polyphony is heterophony, or heterophonic texture.

Polyphonic music examples