Nucleus angularis (NA), one of the two cochlear nuclei in birds, is important for processing sound intensity for localization and most likely has role in sound recognition and other auditory tasks. Because the synaptic properties of auditory nerve inputs to the cochlear nuclei are fundamental to the transformation of auditory information, we investigated the properties of these synapses onto NA neurons using whole-cell patch-clamp recordings from auditory brainstem slices from embryonic chickens (E16-E20). We measured spontaneous excitatory postsynaptic currents (EPSCs), and evoked EPSCs and excitatory postsynaptic potentials (EPSPs) by using extracellular stimulation of the auditory nerve. These excitatory EPSCs were mediated by AMPA and NMDA receptors. The spontaneous EPSCs mediated by AMPA receptors had submillisecond decay kinetics (556 µs at E19), comparable to those of other auditory brainstem areas. The spontaneous EPSCs increased in amplitude and became faster with developmental age. Evoked EPSC and EPSP amplitudes were graded with stimulus intensity. The average amplitude of the EPSC evoked by minimal stimulation was twice as large as the average spontaneous EPSC amplitude (~110 pA versus ~55 pA), suggesting that single fibers make multiple contacts onto each postsynaptic NA neuron. Because of their small size, minimal EPSPs were subthreshold, and we estimate at least 3-5 inputs were required to reach threshold. In contrast to the fast EPSCs, EPSPs in NA had a decay time constant of 12.5 ms which was heavily influenced by the membrane time constant. Thus, NA neurons spatially and temporally integrate auditory information arriving from multiple auditory nerve afferents.