Haha! I love the fact that he spent ten minutes to say it doesn't matter how it's pronounced.

I love this opera and have always struggled with the pronunciation. Thank you for not clarifying it at all. 😂

Thanks for being the brightest light I could imagine in this very depressing and illiterate world.

Love your humour as much as your explanations

Finally a definitive answer to the question. Thank you for your amusing and informative video which gives the authoritative answer: "I don't know".

Dear Mr. James Harbeck... I just "discovered" you today. I love your videos. They are educational and entertaining... Humorous, but not comical (At least the ones I've seen thus far). Please don't stop!

You are an extraordinary man and worth watching. Thank you indeed for the time and effort put into this amusing and entertaining explanation.

Now I appreciate Turandot much better, thank you.

I could listen to him all day! What a character. haha

I gave you a like 👍, but you may have cured me of my tendency to go on and on, with many diversions into the tedious weeds, until the tears welling up in my hostage's eyes remind me to wrap it up and set them free.

I saw Turandot decades ago and it has always annoyed me when people drop the T in the pronunciation assuming it's silent. You have to really listen to this until the end but it's a complex answer to the actual pronunciation. Thank you! This is great!!

You can always fudge it by pronouncing the 't' without the plosive expression. Thanks for the fascinating discussion of something that people have puzzled over. When the subject comes up again. I'll recommend this highly entertaining video.

Love this guy!!! 😀 subtle orchestra jokes in there - funny. And extremelyinteresting. (From a long time orchestral string section player )

That was worth searching for. Loved the history lesson even if I still don't know how to pronounce it.

Despite what Puccini may have written, the name Turandot is of Persian origin (or, more accurately, came to Persian via other central Asian languages). And, in the Persian pronunciation, the final 't' is silent. I've always felt comfortable with dual "correct" pronunciations considering Puccini was Italian (and, according to Italian language rules, the final 't' is not silent). Now, though, after Mr. Harbeck informs me that Puccini is thought to have personally used the Persian pronunciation, I am leaning toward considering the silent 't' as the sole correct pronunciation.

Excellent funny video ! My personal vote: without the "t" (the french way).

You are very entertaining! And you have a gift for languages, accents and pronunciation, not to mention humor. Thank you.

This video alone made me subscribe to your channel, I haven't even seen the rest yet! :)

THIS is the stuff that really keeps me awake at night!

Soprano Dame Eva Turner, one of the very first to sing the title role, said in an interview "In my day it was Turando....and I must admit I rather like it that way." Who is to argue with Dame Eva Turner?!

This is excellent. Also, “Turandot” doesn’t sound even a little like Cantonese or Toisanese, either.

Re: ‘surèly’, I think it’s an epenthesis, like various other examples in the work where Handel seemed to poeticize the biblical prose by adding extra syllables when he needed them in the score: ‘revealèd’, ‘walkèd’, ‘callèd’, ‘shinèd’, ‘unstoppèd’, ‘despisèd’, ‘pluckèd’, ‘bruisèd’, ‘healèd’, ‘turnèd’, ‘lookèd’, ‘receivèd’, ‘dièd’, ‘redeemèd’.

I feel much better now about not knowing how to pronounce Turandot!

I loved your video. Funny and so interesting and informative

I just wanted to thank you for this video. It is brilliant.

A very impotant explanation! please enlighten us on the correct pronounciation of

Thanks for clearing that up! 😂 This is the most entertaining, and educational answer to that age old question: Dot or Doh?

I’m totally blown away how precise your tone in all languages If I ask what nationality are use👏👍

That was fantastic. Thank you!

James, I love your video!!!!!! Let me know if you will come in Italy again! :)

Ha ha, I never realized Turandot sounds inappropriate in Mandarin pronunciation.

Words for life - If a girl has a history of murdering guy that ask her out: DONT

Interestingly Turandot almost matches the pinyin of the Mandarin word/phrase meaning "suddenly": 突然的 or Tu Ran De -- turande!

Lollll gosh I love this 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

Bravo ha ha and it’s pronounced long O’. Precious indeed

This is amazing! I always talk about this with my peeps.. mind if I share this with them?

Turan-dough sounds faux-French. Pretentious.

Entertaining, however I'm still none the wiser.

Guy's grouse!

It's TURanDOT. Only in French would it be Turan-dough. It's NOT French. In Italian it's TuranDOT. Turandot is a Persian name. In Persian it's TURanDAKT.

Sir, first you scream into my ears, then give me a history of the opera that I didn't need, and then waffled on about some other stuff. You could have started at the pronunciation and then said you didn't know.