Giacomo Puccini - Nessun dorma, from Turandot (Guitar Transcription)

- A princess who wields life-or-death power over anyone who enters her kingdom, Turandot, daughter of the Emperor of China, seems to take pleasure in not only breaking men’s hearts, but also in sending them to their death. Yet there is more to Turandot than meets the eye. In reality, Turandot’s sadism springs from a deep-rooted fear of men. A link in a chain of violence whose roots lie in the rape-murder of a distant ancestor, Turandot is both victim and victor. Like a sniper picking off an enemy one by one, Turandot engineers the death of any man who dare ask for the privilege of taking her as his wife. Her victories, however, give her no joy, no resolution. With each man killed, her fear consumes her more. After the public beheading of the luckless Prince of Persia, yet another prince travels to China to ask for her hand in marriage. One can almost envision her rolling her eyes at this clueless man, who seems unaware that each of his predecessors’ lives have been snuffed out by the bitter Princess Turandot. As was her custom in dealing with suitors, Turandot devises a game of chance in which the deck is stacked in her favor. She promises to marry the unknown prince if and only if he answers three riddles near-impossible to answer correctly. One wrong guess, however, lands the suitor on death row. Blinded by love and fueled by his ability to see that there is more to Turandot’s seeming cruelty than meets the eye, the mystery prince takes up Turandot on her proposal. To everyone’s amazement, he solves each of her riddles correctly. The panicked Turandot, backed up against the wall, begs her father to be free from her promise to marry the man who solves her puzzles. A true gentleman, the unknown prince offers a counter-proposal. His love for Turandot overpowers his desire to possess her. He offers her another opportunity to win her freedom. If she guesses his name before the next morning, he volunteers to die at her hands. If she does not, however, she must accept him as her husband. In this aria, the prince declares his confidence that, though no one in the kingdom can sleep, the tension of contemplating another death at the hands of Turandot giving rise to nationwide insomia. “None shall sleep,“ declares the unknown prince, affirming his steadfast belief in love’s power to overcome fear, hatred, and prejudice. In the end, the prince vows to throw his fate into the princess’ hands, promising to reveal his name to her, and then allow her to choose marriage to him or execution. Consumed by fear, Turandot desperately seeks a way out of this dilemma. She finds one in the servant Liù. Knowing Liù’s close friendship with the prince, Turandot summons the servant to her. Liù’s feelings for the prince went beyond friendship. Liù had fallen in love with the prince, and wanted to protect him at all cost. With the servant’s refusal to reveal the prince’s name, Turandot has Liù tortured. Despite great pain, the courageous servant girl snatches a knife from one of the soldiers administering the torture. Plunging the knife into her breast, she chooses suicide rather than give up the friend whom she loves. Shocked at Turandot’s act, filled with conflicting emotions, the prince demands to know why the woman he loves has just caused the death of his dear friend. His love for the princess overpowers his hatred for her act as he embraces Turandot in a passionate kiss. Struggling against his embrace, the princess suddenly feels a surge of a new emotion within her soul--love. Turandot, confused by this new feeling, asks the prince to leave, his life intact. Yet the prince, trusting in her inner character, reveals his name as a final test--Calàf. Turandot thus has the right to execute him as she has done with all of her past lovers. Turandot, though, yields to her newfound love for this courageous prince. In his courage, she finds her own. With one word, she ends centuries of hatred and violence. She announces to her father and the assembled subjects that she has discovered his name--and his name is “Love.“ A kingdom rejoices. The violence of the past is erased in a word of forgiveness. This piece is arranged for the classical guitar by Emre Sabuncuoglu. This arrangement is dedicated to the memory of J. Ross Johnson, who passed away on December 24, 2011 after a life dedicated to helping others. He was the father of LAGA’s Cheryl Anne Groth. Recommended videos: ✔️ Badinerie by J. S. Bach for solo guitar: ✔️ Chopin Nocturne No. 20, Op. Posth for solo guitar: ✔️ Autumn Song by P. I. Tchaikovsky for solo guitar: