"Edelweiss" is a show tune from the 1959 Rodgers and Hammerstein musical The Sound of Music. It is named after the edelweiss, a white flower found high in the Alpine hills. It is sung by Captain Georg Ludwig von Trapp and his family during the concert near the end of Act II as a defiant statement of Austrian patriotism in the face of the pressure put upon him to join the navy of Nazi Germany. In the 1965 film adaptation, the song is also sung by the Captain earlier in the film as he rediscovers music and a love for his children.

Contents 1 Writing of the song 2 Film adaptation 3 Misconceptions about the song 4 American church use 4.1 Modified (Benediction) lyrics 4.2 Legal debate 5 Versions 6 References 7 External links

[edit] Writing of the song

While The Sound of Music was in tryouts in Boston, Richard Rodgers felt he needed to express the sense of loss in song as Captain von Trapp bids farewell to the Austria he knew and loved. He and Oscar Hammerstein II, who was in the throes of stomach cancer, decided to write an extra song that von Trapp would sing in the Kaltzberg Festival (Salzburg Festival in the film) concert sequence towards the end of the show. As they were writing it, they felt that this song could also utilise the guitar-playing and folk-singing talents of Theodore Bikel, who created the role of Captain von Trapp on Broadway. The Lindsay and Crouse script provides a metaphor of the edelweiss flower, as a symbol of the Austria that Captain von Trapp, Maria and their children knew would live on in their hearts despite the Nazi annexation of their homeland. As such, the metaphor of this song builds on an earlier scene when Gretl presents a bouquet of edelweiss flowers to Elsa Schraeder during her visit to the von Trapp household. Rodgers provided a haunting waltz-time melody to the simple lyric that Hammerstein wrote about the appearance of the edelweiss flower. This song turned out to be one of the most beloved songs in the musical, and also one of the best-loved songs of Rodgers and Hammerstein.

This song was the last song that Rodgers and Hammerstein wrote together; Hammerstein was suffering from stomach cancer,^[1] which would take his life nine months after The Sound of Music opened on Broadway.

[edit] Film adaptation

Although the stage production uses the song only during the concert sequence, Ernest Lehman's screenplay for the film adaptation uses the song twice. Lehman created a scene that makes extra use of the song. This scene, inspired by a line in the original script by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse, calls for Captain von Trapp to sing this song with his children in their family drawing room and rediscover the love he felt for them. Lehman also expanded the scope of the song when it was sung in the Salzburg Festival concert scene so that Captain von Trapp and his family would call the crowds to join in the song with him, in defiance of the Nazi soldiers posted around the arena.

[edit] Misconceptions about the song

The great popularity of the song has led many of its audience to believe that it is an Austrian folk song or even the official national anthem.^[2] In actuality, Austria's official anthem is "Land der Berge, Land am Strome", and the anthem used before the Anschluss was "Sei gesegnet ohne Ende". The edelweiss is a popular flower in Austria, and was featured on the old 1 Schilling coin. It can also now be seen on the 2 cent Euro coin. It is, however, a protected flower in Austria and therefore illegal to pick. An "edelweiss" is also worn as a cap device by certain Austrian Army and all German mountain units.

[edit] American church use

During the 1970s in America, the song became a popular tune with which to sing the benediction in some Christian churches. At a United Methodist Women's Conference, revised lyrics for the song were handed out with instructions stating that the benediction was to be sung to the tune of "Edelweiss". The trend spread quickly across different denominations of Christianity, and it is still very common to hear the benedictory lyrics ("May the Lord, Mighty God") sung to an organ or piano accompaniment of the song from the Sound of Music.

[edit] Modified (Benediction) lyrics

"May the Lord, mighty God,

Bless and keep you forever.

Grant you peace, perfect peace,

Courage in every endeavor.

Lift your eyes and see His face,

And His grace forever.

May the Lord, mighty God,

Bless and keep you forever."

[edit] Legal debate

Recent^* debate has centered on the legality of this practice. The parent company holding the rights to Rodgers and Hammerstein's music has explicitly stated that it will prosecute congregations that continue to use the song without permission. (^*referenced article is dated 2001) ^[3]

[edit] Versions

• The Belgian performer Michael Junior performed this song in his concerts.
• The German Americans play the same tune every year in the Oktoberfest, Maryland with the ringing of cowbells.
• A slightly altered version of the song has been sung by Shamrock Rovers supporters since the 1960s.
• The English singer Vince Hill reached #2 in the UK Singles Chart in 1967 with his cover version of the track.^[4]
• The Canadian singer Sarah Slean has performed the song as a singalong in her concerts.
• Linda Eder recorded a version of the song for her 2003 album Broadway, My Way.
• 10-year-old Hollie Steel performed the song on the third series of Britain's Got Talent and infamously broke down half way through due to nerves.^[5]
• Elaine Paige recorded the song for her 2006 album, Essential Musicals.
• The virtual singer Megurine Luka performed this song.
• The song was featured in a comedy skit performed by Seth MacFarlane and Alex Borstein on Seth and Alex's Almost Live Comedy Show, in which Borstein opposes MacFarlane's singing of the song, only to be jokingly reminded that, as a result of the Holocaust, Borstein's only competition as a female Jewish comedian in Hollywood is Sarah Silverman. Borstein then joins MacFarlane in singing the song.

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Legal information from the General Board of Discipleship of the United Methodist Church