We have all heard it, yet most of us would not be able to name it. The term polyphony (from the Greek for “many sounds”) is used to describe music that employs simultaneous yet independent melodies.

NPR's Ayesha Rascoe speaks with musician Tim DeLaughter about his choral rock group, The Polyphonic Spree, and its new album, "Salvage Enterprise." When you write for a living, writer's block can be a ...

Editor’s note: To listen along as you read, click the links in the text. These pieces were performed for The Economist by the choir of Jesus College, Cambridge. IN 1605 Charles de Ligny, a Frenchman, ...