What is polyphony and what makes it specially suited to liturgy?
Polyphony literally means many voices . Polyphon- ic music has two or more voice parts that move inde- pendently (or contrapuntally ) to weave a musical fab- ric. The term generally applies to sacred vocal music from the late Middle Ages through the Renaissance. Polyphonic music occasionally sounds chordal (or homophonic ), but the contrapuntal style is generally distinguished from the homophonic style in its ap- proach to harmony. In homophony, chords are pre- supposed, and voice parts are written chiefly to fit into a chord. In counterpoint, voice parts are written more as individual melodies, with chords resulting from the simultaneous tones of the independent lines. This emphasis on the individual vocal lines shows the influence of chant, from which polyphony grew organically. The “golden age” of sacred polyphony lasted from about 1400 until 1650, but composers of later eras continued to favor the contrapuntal style, especially when writing for the church.
