the Sound of Music page 2

the Sound of Music page 2 by ric Gustafson


Who was Maria von Trapp?

She was born on Jan 25 1905. Her mother Augusta died when Maria was just two years old. She was raised by her father's cousin. Her father Karl died when she was nine years old. She was then raised by an uncle who was stern and abusive. In school, she was outspoken.
After high school, she enrolled at a teacher's college because she wanted to become a teacher. In 1923 as she hiked with some friends, a revelation came over her. She decided to devote her life to God. She went to Salzburg and announced at Nonnberg Abbey that she wanted to become a nun. She became a postulant which was the first stage in joining a convent.
In October 1926, she came to the home of Captain Georg von Trapp who was a former commander in the Austrian navy. Trapp's wife Agathe had died in 1922 and he was raising his seven children. Maria bonded with the children by singing music to them. Trapp had planned to marry Princess Yvonne but fell in love with Maria. They married on November 26 1927 and had two children together.
At a Salzburg Music Festival, the family now singing as the Trapp Chamber Choir won the competition. The group toured Europe until Austria was annexed by Hitler in 1938. Trapp was offered a commission in the navy. They went on a tour of America and their son Johannes was born in 1939. Maria had a visa for the family and they stayed in the US. They changed their name to the Trapp Family Singers and a bought a farm in Vermont which became the Trapp Family Lodge.
Maria wrote her autobiography in 1949 and it became a bestseller. Maria sold the rights to her story and the Sound of Music became a hit on stage and screen. Their lodge burned to the ground in 1980 but was rebuilt in 1983.
Georg von Trapp died of lung cancer in 1947.
Maria von Trapp died on March 28 1987. She was 82


research help: ' the Sound of Music' by I-5 Publishing


Peace and God's blessings. Love Ric