I was thinking of popping in a DVD of probably my favorite Christmas movie “It’s A Wonderful Life”, but lo and behold “The Sound of Music” is running on television here locally. So, I couldn’t pass up such a wonderful movie. It seems that “The Sound of Music” is slowly becoming a yearly tradition. It’s definitely one of the most feel good movie ever made. And all the memorable songs from that movie has been sung in music rooms all over the world.

Rodgers and Hammerstein’s The Sound of Music is a 1965 film directed by Robert Wise and starred Julie Andrews in the lead role. The film is based on the Broadway musical The Sound of Music, with songs written by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II, and with the musical book written by the writing team of Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse. Ernest Lehman wrote the screenplay.

The musical originated with the book The Story of the Trapp Family Singers by Maria von Trapp. It contains many popular songs, including “Edelweiss”, “My Favorite Things”, “Climb Ev’ry Mountain”, “Do-Re-Mi”, “Sixteen Going on Seventeen” and “The Lonely Goatherd”, as well as the title song.

I bet you can still sing most of the songs… If you don’t, then just ask your children, they probably know it from their music class. Here’s a summary to “The Sound of Music”

Part I: In Salzburg, Austria, Maria, a woman studying to become a nun, is sent from her convent to be the governess to seven children of a widower naval commander, Captain Georg Ritter von Trapp. The children, initially hostile and mischievous, eventually come to love her when she introduces them to the joys of singing. Maria finds herself falling in love with the captain, who breaks off his engagement to a wealthy baroness to marry Maria instead.

Part II: The Nazis take power in Austria as part of the Anschluss, and attempt to force Captain von Trapp back in service. The captain, unwilling to serve the Reich, delays Zeller - the gauleiter (party leader for the district) - by insisting he’s part of the Von Trapp Family Singers and must remain with them during a performance at the Salzburg music festival, in a guarded theater. After a curtain call, the whole family flees and hikes over the mountains to Switzerland.

So, let me sign off for tonight, and get back to the film and leave you with a question. One of Maria’s favorite things were “raindrops on roses”, and I guess one of my favorite things is “The Sound of Music” movie. What are your favorite things?

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