Coming from the Greek '
same-sounding'.
Literally,
voices or
instruments sounding together. The term, which originally applied to
unison singing (for which
monophony is now preferred), signifies part-writing in which there is a clear distinction between
melody and accompanying
harmony or in which all the parts move in the same
rhythm (
chordal style), as opposed to
polyphonic treatment in which parts may move independently.