The Sound of Music - Edelweiss

Music 5 years ago

The Sound of Music - Edelweiss

Edelweiss is a show tune from the 1959 Rodgers and Hammerstein musical film The Sound of Music.

It is named after the edelweiss, a white flower found high in the Alps.

The song was created for the production of the film in the role originated by performer Theodore Bikel as a song for the character of Captain Georg Ludwig von Trapp.

In the musical, Captain von Trapp and his family sing this song during the concert near the end of Act II as a statement of Austrian patriotism in the face of the pressure put upon him to join the navy of Nazi Germany following the Anschluss.

The song is also sung by the Captain earlier in the film when he rediscovers music with his children.

Tidbit: The great popularity of this song in the Anglophone world has led many of its audience to believe that it is an Austrian folk song or even the official national anthem. This perception is false.