Nessun dorma
Encyclopedia
Nessun dorma is an aria
from the final act of Giacomo Puccini
's opera
Turandot
, and is one of the best-known tenor
arias in all opera. It is sung by Calaf, il principe ignoto (the unknown prince), who falls in love at first sight with the beautiful but cold Princess Turandot. However, any man who wishes to wed Turandot must first answer her three riddles; if he fails, he will be beheaded.
As the final act opens, it is now night. Calaf is alone in the moonlit palace gardens. In the distance, he hears Turandot's heralds proclaiming her command. His aria begins with an echo of their cry and a reflection on Princess Turandot:
Just before the climactic end of the aria, a chorus of women is heard singing in the distance:
Calaf, now certain of victory, sings:
In performance, the final "Vincerò!" features a sustained B4, followed by the final note, an A4 sustained even longer—although Puccini's score did not explicitly specify that either note be sustained. In the original score, the B is written as an eighth note while the A is a quarter note. Both are high notes in the tenor range
. The only recording to follow Puccini's score exactly was the very first, sung by Gina Cigna
and Francesco Merli
, conducted by Franco Ghione
.
In Alfano's completion of Act 3, the Nessun dorma theme makes a final triumphal appearance at the end of the opera. The theme also makes a concluding reappearance in Luciano Berio
's later completion (this having been an expressed intention of Puccini's), but in a more subdued orchestration.
.)
status after Luciano Pavarotti
's recording of it was used as the theme song of BBC
television's coverage of the 1990 FIFA World Cup
in Italy
. It subsequently reached #2 on the UK Singles Chart
Although Pavarotti rarely sang the role of Calaf on stage, Nessun dorma became his signature aria and, in turn, a sporting anthem in its own right, especially for football. Pavarotti gave a rendition of Nessun dorma at his final performance, the finale of the Opening Ceremony of the 2006 Torino Winter Olympics, although it was later revealed that he had lip-synched the specially pre-recorded performance as he was very ill. His Decca
recording of the aria was played at his funeral during the flypast
by the Italian Air Force.
, Manowar, Sarah Brightman
, Vitas
, David Phelps
, Mina
, Paul Potts
, Russell Watson
, Gardar Thor Cortes, Michael Bolton
, Jackie Evancho
, Prince Poppycock
and Donald Braswell II
. Scott Foppiano, American Theatre Organ Society's Organist of the year for 2007, released a theatre pipe organ
transcription of the aria on his album, Beyond the Blue Horizon
. In 2009, singer Antony Hegarty
, lead singer of Antony and the Johnsons
recorded the aria with the Roma Sinfonietta Orchestra, which was released for free by the Italian coffee company, Lavazza
. While the orchestration of the recording is Puccini's original, Hegarty performs the song with his famous, quavering delivery. British guitarist Jeff Beck
's 2010 album, Emotion & Commotion
, includes an instrumental version of this aria where the guitar takes the place of the human voice to an orchestral accompaniment. In 2007, trumpeter Chris Botti
covered "Nessun Dorma" on his album Italia
..
aligned with the film's narrative climax, giving symbolic
meaning to the aria's rich emotional impact. Films in which the aria plays a significant role in the soundtrack
include The Killing Fields
, New York Stories
, Mar adentro
, The Sum of All Fears
, The Mirror Has Two Faces
, and Bend It Like Beckham
. Nessun Dorma is also the title of a short film by Ken Russell
included in the 1987 film Aria. (Aria consists of ten segments by a variety of directors; each one features the director's visual accompaniment to arias and scenes from operas. The films have minimal or no dialogue, with most of the spoken content coming from the words of the aria itself.) Nessun Dorma is also sung by Pavarotti himself as part of his fictional role in Yes, Giorgio
.
Aria
An aria in music was originally any expressive melody, usually, but not always, performed by a singer. The term is now used almost exclusively to describe a self-contained piece for one voice usually with orchestral accompaniment...
from the final act of Giacomo Puccini
Giacomo Puccini
Giacomo Antonio Domenico Michele Secondo Maria Puccini was an Italian composer whose operas, including La bohème, Tosca, Madama Butterfly, and Turandot, are among the most frequently performed in the standard repertoire...
's opera
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
Turandot
Turandot
Turandot is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini, set to a libretto in Italian by Giuseppe Adami and Renato Simoni.Though Puccini's first interest in the subject was based on his reading of Friedrich Schiller's adaptation of the play, his work is most nearly based on the earlier text Turandot...
, and is one of the best-known tenor
Tenor
The tenor is a type of male singing voice and is the highest male voice within the modal register. The typical tenor voice lies between C3, the C one octave below middle C, to the A above middle C in choral music, and up to high C in solo work. The low extreme for tenors is roughly B2...
arias in all opera. It is sung by Calaf, il principe ignoto (the unknown prince), who falls in love at first sight with the beautiful but cold Princess Turandot. However, any man who wishes to wed Turandot must first answer her three riddles; if he fails, he will be beheaded.
Context and analysis
In the act before this aria, Calaf has correctly answered the three riddles put to all of Princess Turandot's prospective suitors. Nonetheless, she recoils at the thought of marriage to him. Calaf offers her another chance by challenging her to guess his name by dawn. (As he kneels before her, the Nessun dorma theme makes a first appearance, to his words, "Il mio nome non sai!") If she does so, she can execute him; but if she does not, she must marry him. The cruel and emotionally cold princess then decrees that none of her subjects shall sleep that night until his name is discovered. If they fail, all will be killed.As the final act opens, it is now night. Calaf is alone in the moonlit palace gardens. In the distance, he hears Turandot's heralds proclaiming her command. His aria begins with an echo of their cry and a reflection on Princess Turandot:
- "Nessun dorma! Nessun dorma! Tu pure, o Principessa, nella tua fredda stanza, guardi le stelle.. che tremano d'amore, e di speranza!"
-
- (English translation: "None shall sleep! None shall sleep! Even you, O Princess, in your cold bedroom, watch the stars.. that tremble with love and with hope!")
-
- "Ma il mio mistero è chiuso in me; il nome mio nessun saprà! No, No! Sulla tua bocca lo dirò quando la luce splenderà!"
-
- ("But my secret is hidden within me; none will know my name! No, no! On your mouth I will say it when the light shines!")
-
- "Ed il mio bacio scioglierà il silenzio che ti fa mia!"
-
- ("And my kiss will dissolve the silence that makes you mine!")
-
Just before the climactic end of the aria, a chorus of women is heard singing in the distance:
- "Il nome suo nessun saprà... E noi dovrem, ahimè, morir, morir!"
-
- ("No one will know his name... and we will have to, alas, die, die!")
-
Calaf, now certain of victory, sings:
- "Dilegua, o notte! Tramontate, stelle! Tramontate, stelle! All'alba vincerò! Vincerò! Vincerò!"
-
-
- ("Vanish, o night! Set, stars! Set, stars! At dawn, I will win! I will win! I will win! ")
-
In performance, the final "Vincerò!" features a sustained B4, followed by the final note, an A4 sustained even longer—although Puccini's score did not explicitly specify that either note be sustained. In the original score, the B is written as an eighth note while the A is a quarter note. Both are high notes in the tenor range
Vocal range
Vocal range is the measure of the breadth of pitches that a human voice can phonate. Although the study of vocal range has little practical application in terms of speech, it is a topic of study within linguistics, phonetics, and speech and language pathology, particularly in relation to the study...
. The only recording to follow Puccini's score exactly was the very first, sung by Gina Cigna
Gina Cigna
Gina Cigna was a French-Italian opera singer, one of the leading dramatic soprano of the inter-war period.- Biography :...
and Francesco Merli
Francesco Merli
Francesco Merli was an Italian opera singer, particularly associated with heavy roles such as Otello, Canio and Calaf. He ranks as one of the finest dramatic tenors of the inter-war period....
, conducted by Franco Ghione
Franco Ghione
Franco Ghione was an Italian conductor and violinist. He graduated from the Parma Conservatory and became a violinist for the Parma Theatre and the Augusteo in Rome. He began a conducting career in 1913 and conducted in many opera houses, including La Scala...
.
In Alfano's completion of Act 3, the Nessun dorma theme makes a final triumphal appearance at the end of the opera. The theme also makes a concluding reappearance in Luciano Berio
Luciano Berio
Luciano Berio, Cavaliere di Gran Croce OMRI was an Italian composer. He is noted for his experimental work and also for his pioneering work in electronic music.-Biography:Berio was born at Oneglia Luciano Berio, Cavaliere di Gran Croce OMRI (October 24, 1925 – May 27, 2003) was an Italian...
's later completion (this having been an expressed intention of Puccini's), but in a more subdued orchestration.
Recordings
Nessun dorma sung by some of the most famous interpreters of Calaf appear on the following compilation recordings. (For full-length recordings of the opera, see Turandot discographyTurandot discography
This is a partial discography of Turandot, an opera by Giacomo Puccini. The first performance was held at the Teatro alla Scala in Milan on 25 April 1926, conducted by Arturo Toscanini.-List of audio recordings:-List of video recordings:...
.)
- The Very Best of Beniamino GigliBeniamino GigliBeniamino Gigli was an Italian opera singer. The most famous tenor of his generation, he was renowned internationally for the great beauty of his voice and the soundness of his vocal technique. Music critics sometimes took him to task, however, for what was perceived to be the over-emotionalism...
(EMI Classics) - The Very Best of Jussi BjörlingJussi BjörlingJohan Jonatan "Jussi" Björling was a Swedish tenor. One of the leading operatic singers of the 20th Century, Björling appeared frequently at the Royal Opera House in London, La Scala in Milan, and the Metropolitan Opera in New York City as well as at other major European opera...
(EMI Classics) - Richard TuckerRichard TuckerRichard Tucker was an American operatic tenor.-Early life:Tucker was born Rivn Ticker in Brooklyn, New York, into a family of Romanian immigrants from Bessarabia. His father, Shmul Ticker, and mother Fanya-Tsipa Ticker had already adopted the surname "Tucker" by the time their son entered first...
in Recital (Columbia Masterworks/Myto) - The Very Best of Franco CorelliFranco CorelliFranco Corelli was a famous Italian tenor who had a major international opera career between 1951 and 1976. Associated in particular with the spinto and dramatic tenor roles of the Italian repertory, he was celebrated universally for his powerhouse voice, electrifying top notes, clear timbre, a...
(EMI Classics) - PavarottiLuciano Pavarottiright|thumb|Luciano Pavarotti performing at the opening of the Constantine Palace in [[Strelna]], 31 May 2003. The concert was part of the celebrations for the 300th anniversary of [[St...
Forever (Decca) - The Essential Plácido DomingoPlácido DomingoPlácido Domingo KBE , born José Plácido Domingo Embil, is a Spanish tenor and conductor known for his versatile and strong voice, possessing a ringing and dramatic tone throughout its range...
(Deutsche Grammophon) - Sarah BrightmanSarah BrightmanSarah Brightman is an English classical crossover soprano, actress, songwriter and dancer. She is famous for possessing a vocal range of over 3 octaves and singing in the whistle register...
: EdenEden (Sarah Brightman album)Eden is a 1998 album by English soprano Sarah Brightman. It was released under license by Nemo Studios to Angel Records.Like Brightman's later album, La Luna, Eden juxtaposed mostly English pop songs with mostly Italian opera songs. This was a departure from her previous albums which was almost...
and ClassicsClassics (Sarah Brightman album)Classics is Sarah Brightman's 2001 album, between La Luna and Encore. It consists in part of previously released material, such as "Time to Say Goodbye" and "Pie Jesu", and new titles such as "Ave Maria" and "Recuerdos de la Alhambra". Entertainment Weekly, although calling Brightman a "stronger...
(Angel Records) - Jackie EvanchoJackie EvanchoJacqueline Marie "Jackie" Evancho is an American child singer described as a classical crossover artist. After entering some talent competitions, issuing an independent album, Prelude to a Dream, and attracting interest on YouTube, she gained wider popularity in 2010 with her performances in the...
Dream With Me and Dream With Me in Concert (Sony Music Distribution)
Luciano Pavarotti
Nessun dorma achieved popPopular culture
Popular culture is the totality of ideas, perspectives, attitudes, memes, images and other phenomena that are deemed preferred per an informal consensus within the mainstream of a given culture, especially Western culture of the early to mid 20th century and the emerging global mainstream of the...
status after Luciano Pavarotti
Luciano Pavarotti
right|thumb|Luciano Pavarotti performing at the opening of the Constantine Palace in [[Strelna]], 31 May 2003. The concert was part of the celebrations for the 300th anniversary of [[St...
's recording of it was used as the theme song of BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
television's coverage of the 1990 FIFA World Cup
1990 FIFA World Cup
The 1990 FIFA World Cup was the 14th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 8 June to 8 July 1990 in Italy, the second country to host the event twice. Teams representing 116 national football associations from all six populated...
in Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
. It subsequently reached #2 on the UK Singles Chart
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
Although Pavarotti rarely sang the role of Calaf on stage, Nessun dorma became his signature aria and, in turn, a sporting anthem in its own right, especially for football. Pavarotti gave a rendition of Nessun dorma at his final performance, the finale of the Opening Ceremony of the 2006 Torino Winter Olympics, although it was later revealed that he had lip-synched the specially pre-recorded performance as he was very ill. His Decca
Decca Records
Decca Records began as a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934; however, owing to World War II, the link with the British company was broken for several decades....
recording of the aria was played at his funeral during the flypast
Flypast
Flypast is a term used in the United Kingdom, the Commonwealth, and other countries to denote ceremonial or honorific flights by groups of aircraft and, rarely, by a single aircraft...
by the Italian Air Force.
Other artists
Nessun dorma has been performed (often in adapted versions of the score) by singers such as Aretha FranklinAretha Franklin
Aretha Louise Franklin is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. Although known for her soul recordings and referred to as The Queen of Soul, Franklin is also adept at jazz, blues, R&B, gospel music, and rock. Rolling Stone magazine ranked her atop its list of The Greatest Singers of All...
, Manowar, Sarah Brightman
Sarah Brightman
Sarah Brightman is an English classical crossover soprano, actress, songwriter and dancer. She is famous for possessing a vocal range of over 3 octaves and singing in the whistle register...
, Vitas
Vitas
Vitaliy "Vitalik" Vladasovich Grachyov , better known by his stage name Vitas , is a Russian singer-songwriter.Known for his high falsetto voice, he has been given the nickname "Prince of the Dolphin Voice" in China...
, David Phelps
David Phelps
David Norris Phelps is an American Christian vocalist, songwriter and vocal arranger, who is best known for singing tenor in the Gaither Vocal Band. He has also released several solo albums, including four Christmas collections...
, Mina
Mina (singer)
Anna Maria Quaini, Grand Officer , known as Mina, is an Italian pop singer. She was a staple of Italian television variety shows and a dominant figure in Italian pop music from the mid-1960s to mid-1970s known for her three-octave vocal range, the agility of her soprano voice, and her image as an...
, Paul Potts
Paul Potts
Paul Robert Potts is an English pop opera tenor who won the first series of ITV's Britain's Got Talent in 2007, singing an operatic aria, "Nessun dorma" from Puccini's "Turandot". As a singer of operatic music, Potts recorded the album One Chance, which went to #1 in nine countries...
, Russell Watson
Russell Watson
Russell Watson is an English tenor who has released singles and albums of both operatic-style and pop songs. The self-styled "People's Tenor" had been singing since he was a child, and became known after performing at a working men's club...
, Gardar Thor Cortes, Michael Bolton
Michael Bolton
Michael Bolton is an American singer and songwriter. Bolton originally performed in the hard rock and heavy metal genres from the mid 1970s to the mid 1980s, both on his early solo albums and those recorded as the frontman of the band Blackjack...
, Jackie Evancho
Jackie Evancho
Jacqueline Marie "Jackie" Evancho is an American child singer described as a classical crossover artist. After entering some talent competitions, issuing an independent album, Prelude to a Dream, and attracting interest on YouTube, she gained wider popularity in 2010 with her performances in the...
, Prince Poppycock
Prince Poppycock
John Andrew Quale is an American singer, songwriter, and performer best known by the stage name and persona of Prince Poppycock. Quale, who specializes in musical theater and opera, describes Prince Poppycock on his website as a "roguish operatic dandy."...
and Donald Braswell II
Donald Braswell II
Donald Braswell II is an American actor, classical crossover tenor and composer. Braswell was on a fast track to become an internationally acclaimed opera singer when he suffered a car accident in 1995 that made him unable to speak for almost two years...
. Scott Foppiano, American Theatre Organ Society's Organist of the year for 2007, released a theatre pipe organ
Theatre organ
A theatre organ is a pipe organ originally designed specifically for imitation of an orchestra. New designs have tended to be around some of the sounds and blends unique to the instrument itself....
transcription of the aria on his album, Beyond the Blue Horizon
Beyond the Blue Horizon
Beyond the Blue Horizon is a 1971 studio album by American guitarist George Benson, released by CTI Records.- Track listing :# "So What" – 9:15# "The Gentle Rain" – 9:09...
. In 2009, singer Antony Hegarty
Antony Hegarty
Antony Hegarty is an English singer-songwriter, best known as the lead singer of the band Antony and the Johnsons.-Early life:...
, lead singer of Antony and the Johnsons
Antony and the Johnsons
Antony and the Johnsons is a music group presenting the work of Antony Hegarty and his collaborators.-Career:British experimental musician David Tibet of Current 93 heard a demo and offered to release Antony's music through his Durtro label. The debut album, Antony and the Johnsons, was released...
recorded the aria with the Roma Sinfonietta Orchestra, which was released for free by the Italian coffee company, Lavazza
Lavazza
Luigi Lavazza S.p.A. is an Italian manufacturer of coffee products. Founded in Turin in 1895 by Luigi Lavazza, it was initially run from a small grocery store at Via San Tommaso 10. The business of Lavazza S.p.A. is currently administered by the third and fourth generation of the Lavazza family.-...
. While the orchestration of the recording is Puccini's original, Hegarty performs the song with his famous, quavering delivery. British guitarist Jeff Beck
Jeff Beck
Geoffrey Arnold "Jeff" Beck is an English rock guitarist. He is one of three noted guitarists to have played with The Yardbirds...
's 2010 album, Emotion & Commotion
Emotion & Commotion
Emotion & Commotion is the tenth studio album by guitarist Jeff Beck, released in April 2010 on ATCO Records. In addition to featuring vocal performances by Joss Stone, Imelda May and Olivia Safe, the album showcases a 64-piece orchestra on several tracks, and includes covers of well-known songs...
, includes an instrumental version of this aria where the guitar takes the place of the human voice to an orchestral accompaniment. In 2007, trumpeter Chris Botti
Chris Botti
Christopher Stephen "Chris" Botti , is an American trumpeter and composer. In 2007, Botti was nominated for two Grammy Awards including Best Pop Instrumental Album. On December 4, 2009, he was nominated for three more Grammy Awards including Best Pop Instrumental Album and Best Long Form Music Video...
covered "Nessun Dorma" on his album Italia
Italia (album)
Italia is an album by Chris Botti, released by Columbia Records on September 25, 2007. The album places focus on Botti's Italian roots through his cover versions of such songs as "Ave Maria", "Venice", "Estaté", and the title track "Italia", where he partnered with Andrea Bocelli, Botti also...
..
In films
Nessun dorma has been used in many films, often appearing at a central moment in the film—sometimes with the aria's moment of musical resolutionResolution (music)
Resolution in western tonal music theory is the move of a note or chord from dissonance to a consonance .Dissonance, resolution, and suspense can be used to create musical interest...
aligned with the film's narrative climax, giving symbolic
Music semiology
Music semiology , the semiology of music, is the study of signs as they pertain to music on a variety of levels. Following Roman Jakobson, V. Kofi Agawu adopts the idea of musical semiosis being introversive or extroversive--that is, musical signs within a text and without...
meaning to the aria's rich emotional impact. Films in which the aria plays a significant role in the soundtrack
Soundtrack
A soundtrack can be recorded music accompanying and synchronized to the images of a motion picture, book, television program or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack of a film or TV show; or the physical area of a film that contains the...
include The Killing Fields
The Killing Fields (film)
The Killing Fields is a 1984 British drama film about the Khmer Rouge regime in Cambodia, which is based on the experiences of two journalists: Cambodian Dith Pran and American Sydney Schanberg. The film, which won three Academy Awards, was directed by Roland Joffé and stars Sam Waterston as...
, New York Stories
New York Stories
New York Stories is a 1989 anthology film; it consists of three shorts with the central theme being New York City.The first is Life Lessons, directed by Martin Scorsese, written by Richard Price and starring Nick Nolte. The second is Life Without Zoë, directed by Francis Ford Coppola and written by...
, Mar adentro
Mar adentro
The Sea Inside is a 2004 film by the Spanish director Alejandro Amenábar. It is based on the real-life story of Ramón Sampedro , a Spanish ship mechanic left quadriplegic after a diving accident and his 29-year campaign in support of euthanasia and the right to end his life.- Plot summary :This is...
, The Sum of All Fears
The Sum of All Fears (film)
The Sum of All Fears is a 2002 American action film/political thriller directed by Phil Alden Robinson and based on the novel The Sum of All Fears by Tom Clancy...
, The Mirror Has Two Faces
The Mirror Has Two Faces
The Mirror Has Two Faces is a 1996 American romance film produced and directed by Barbra Streisand, who also stars. The screenplay by Richard LaGravenese is based on the 1958 French film Le Miroir à deux faces written by André Cayatte and Gérard Oury, which focused on a homely woman who becomes a...
, and Bend It Like Beckham
Bend It Like Beckham
Bend It Like Beckham is a 2002 comedy-drama film starring Parminder Nagra, Keira Knightley, Jonathan Rhys Myers, Anupam Kher, Shaznay Lewis, and Archie Panjabi first released in the United Kingdom. The film was directed by Gurinder Chadha...
. Nessun Dorma is also the title of a short film by Ken Russell
Ken Russell
Henry Kenneth Alfred "Ken" Russell was an English film director, known for his pioneering work in television and film and for his flamboyant and controversial style. He attracted criticism as being obsessed with sexuality and the church...
included in the 1987 film Aria. (Aria consists of ten segments by a variety of directors; each one features the director's visual accompaniment to arias and scenes from operas. The films have minimal or no dialogue, with most of the spoken content coming from the words of the aria itself.) Nessun Dorma is also sung by Pavarotti himself as part of his fictional role in Yes, Giorgio
Yes, Giorgio
Yes, Giorgio is a 1982 musical/comedy film starring Luciano Pavarotti, his only venture in film acting. Michael J. Lewis provided the original music for the film with cinematography by Fred J. Koenekamp...
.