​What is Musical Texture?

There are four types of textures that appear in music, Monophony, Polyphony, Homophony, and Heterophony. These four textures appear in music from around the world. Learning how these textures have evolved, not only leads through the history of Western music but also shows us how music is a global innovation​.

​Monophony

musical texture made up of a single unaccompanied melodic line.​

​Homophony

a musical texture of several parts in which one melody predominates; the other parts may be either simple chords or a more elaborate accompaniment pattern.​

​Polyphony

the simultaneous combination of two or more tones or melodic lines (the term derives from the Greek word for “many sounds”).​

​Heterophony

texture resulting from simultaneous performances of melodic variants of the same tune​