Micropolyphony

Micropolyphony is a 20th century musical technique involving the use of sustained dissonant chords that shift slowly over time. The technique was developed by György Ligeti, who explained it as follows: "The complex polyphony of the individual parts is embodied in a harmonic-musical flow, in which the harmonies do not change suddenly, but merge into one another; one clearly discernible interval combination is gradually blurred, and from this cloudiness it is possible to discern a new interval combination taking shape."

The most recognized example of the application of micropolyphony is in Ligeti's composition Atmosphères, a piece used on the soundtrack to Stanley Kubrick's film 2001: A Space Odyssey.