What’s a squillo, and why do opera singers need it? - Ming Luke episode artwork

EPISODE · Aug 17, 2026 · 7 MIN

What’s a squillo, and why do opera singers need it? - Ming Luke

from TED-Ed · host TED-Ed

Discover the techniques opera singers use to project their voices over the orchestra and the importance of a singer’s squillo. --An orchestra fills an opera house with music, but a singer’s voice soars above the instruments. Its melody rings out across thousands of patrons— all without any assistance from a microphone. How is it possible that a single voice can be heard so clearly? The answer lies in the physics of the human voice. Ming Luke explains the carefully honed technique of an expert opera singer.Lesson by Ming Luke, directed by Franz Palomares.Sign up for our newsletter: http://bit.ly/TEDEdNewsletterSupport us on Patreon: http://bit.ly/TEDEdPatreonFollow us on Facebook: http://bit.ly/TEDEdFacebookFind us on Twitter: http://bit.ly/TEDEdTwitterPeep us on Instagram: http://bit.ly/TEDEdInstagramView full lesson: https://ed.ted.com/lessons/what-s-a-squillo-and-why-do-opera-singers-need-it-ming-lukeThank you so much to our patrons for your support! Without you this video would not be possible! Jerome Froelich, Dan Paterniti, Jose Henrique Leopoldo e Silva, Mullaiarasu Sundaramurthy, Elnathan Joshua Bangayan, Caleb ross, Duo Xu, Quinn Shen, Marvin Vizuett, Sid, Marylise CHAUFFETON, Karen Goepen-Wee, Sama aafghani, Mandeep Singh, Abhijit Kiran Valluri, Morgan Williams, Kris Siverhus, Jason Weinstein, Tony Trapuzzano, Devin Harris, Brandy Jones, Shawn Quichocho, Gi Nam Lee, Joy Love Om, Miloš Stevanović, Ghassan Alhazzaa, Yankai Liu, Pavel Zalevskiy, Claudia Mayfield, Stephanie Perozo, Joe Giamartino, Filip Dabrowski, Barbara Smalley, Megan Douglas, Tim Leistikow, Andrés Melo Gámez, Renhe Ji, Ka-Hei Law, Michal Salman, Peter Liu, Mark Morris, Catherine Sverko, Misaki Sato, Tan YH, Ph.D., Rodrigo Carballo, SookKwan Loong, Bev Millar, Merit Gamertsfelder, Lex Azevedo and Noa Shore. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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What’s a squillo, and why do opera singers need it? - Ming Luke

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