text:
Edelweiss (song)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to navigation Jump to search
For other uses, see Edelweiss (disambiguation).
"Edelweiss"
Song
Published
1959
Composer(s)
Richard Rodgers
Lyricist(s)
Oscar Hammerstein II
The Edelweiss white flower
Leontopodium alpinum
"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 Alps (Leontopodium alpinum). It was created for the 1959 Broadway production of The Sound of Music 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. It is also Captain von Trapp's subliminal goodbye to his beloved homeland, using the flower as a symbol of his loyalty to Austria. In the 1965 film adaptation, the song is also sung by the Captain earlier in the film when he rediscovers music with his children.
Contents
1 Writing of the song
2 Film adaptation
3 Misconceptions about the song
4 Legal problems
5 Other versions
6 References
Writing of the song[edit]
While The Sound of Music was in tryouts in Boston, Richard Rodgers felt Captain von Trapp should have a song with which he would bid farewell to the Austria he knew and loved.[1] Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II decided to write an extra song that Captain von Trapp would sing in the festival concert sequence towards the end of the show.[2] As they were writing it, they felt that this song could also utilize the guitar-playing and folk-singing talents of Theodore Bikel, who had been cast as the Captain.[2] The Lindsay and Crouse script provides the metaphor of the simple edelweiss wildflower 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. The metaphor of this song builds on an earlier scene when Gretl presents a bouquet of edelweiss flowers to Baroness Elsa Schräder during her visit to the von Trapp household. Rodgers provided a simple, yet haunting and affecting waltz-time melody, to the simple Italian style ritornello 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,[3] which would take his life nine months after The Sound of Music opened on Broadway.
Film adaptation[edit]
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, with Liesl accompanying him. 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.
Misconceptions about the song[edit]
The great popularity of the 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.[4] Austria's official anthem is in fact "Land der Berge, Land am Strome" and the anthem used from 1929 until 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. The flower is protected in Austria and illegal to pick. An "edelweiss" is also worn as a cap emblem by certain Austrian Army and the German Gebirgsjäger (mountain troopers) units stationed in the nearby Bavarian Alps.[5]
There is similar confusion about another song co-authored by Hammerstein, "Ol' Man River" from the musical Show Boat, which is widely (though erroneously) believed to be an African-American spiritual[clarification needed].[6] The similarity in misconception about the two songs has been noted by two writers, both of whom see it as tribute to Hammerstein's talents. Alyson McLamore in her book Musical Theater: An Appreciation writes, "The last song to be written for the show was 'Edelweiss,' a tender little homage to a native flower of Austria that has the effect of authentic Austrian folksong, much as 'Ol' Man River' struck listeners as a genuine African American spiritual."[7] Hugh Fordin in his biography of Oscar Hammerstein speaks of "the ability of the authors to simulate the quality of an authentic folk song... 'Ol' Man River' had the ring of a black laborer's song... Thirty years later, 'Edelweiss' was widely believed to be an old Austrian song, though Oscar... composed it for the Sound of Music."[8]
Theodore Bikel, in his autobiography, Theo (2002), wrote that, after performances, he was once approached by a native Austrian who said "I love that Edelweiss", and then added with total confidence, "of course, I have known it for a long time, but only in German"[9]
Legal problems[edit]
The estates of Rodgers and Hammerstein have not authorized the use of alternative lyrics with the melody of the song, making certain commercial uses of those versions potentially infringing if they do not fall under fair use. Rodgers stated that "he would take legal action against any group" using the "Edelweiss" melody with altered words;[10] the current rightsholders comply with his wishes, refusing to grant permission for these commercial requests, which are "inconsistent with the creators' intentions".[11]
Other versions[edit]
This article may contain indiscriminate, excessive, or irrelevant examples. Please improve the article by adding more descriptive text and removing less pertinent examples. See Wikipedia's guide to writing better articles for further suggestions. (July 2017)
This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (February 2014) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
Theodore Bikel, who originated the role of Captain von Trapp on Broadway, performed "Edelweiss" (as a duet with Mary Martin) on the original cast album, and included it in his album, In My Own Lifetime - 12 Musical Theater Classics.
Playback singer Bill Lee dubbed the singing voice of Christopher Plummer as Captain von Trapp in the 1965 film adaptation, and its soundtrack album, which included this song.
Josephine Siao Fong-Fong (蕭芳芳) performed a Chinese (Cantonese) version of the song in the 1967 film, Lightning Killer (閃電煞星).[12][13]
The Belgian performer Michael Junior performed this song in his concerts.
German Americans play the same tune every year during the Oktoberfest in Hard Bargain Farm, Maryland, with the ringing of cowbells.
The Irish group Tony and The Graduates had a #7 hit in the Irish Charts with their cover version in November 1966.
The English singer Vince Hill reached #2 in the UK Singles Chart in 1967 with his cover version of the track.[14]
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 halfway through due to nerves.[15] It is also due to be her second single, for her album, Hollie, which was released on 29 March 2010.
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.
Bryn Terfel has included this song in his 1996 Rodgers & Hammerstein album, Something Wonderful: Bryn Terfel Sings Rodgers and Hammerstein.
Julie Andrews has recorded it for her Richard Rodgers tribute album Broadway: The Music of Richard Rodgers.
Iranian singer Farhad Mehrad performed it in both Persian and English in opposition to Iran's post-revolutionary regime, pointing the similarities between Iran after revolution and Austria under Nazi occupation.
Austrian singers, Sigrid & Marina made a recording of the song in 2009.
André Rieu has recorded his own arrangement and released it on his 2002 album, Dreaming.
Tanya Donelly, best known for her work with Throwing Muses, The Breeders, and Belly recorded a version of the song which was self-released as a free download on her website, circa 2001.
Joe Junior and Sire Ma performed this song in their roles as Louis Kim and Kim Yee-Wah respectively in TVB's 2012 series Bullet Brain.
The Voice Australia contestant Celia Pavey performed and recorded Edelweiss in May 2013.
Andy Conaghan recorded the song for ABC Classics as part of a compilation album, I Dreamed a Dream: The Hit Songs of Broadway in 2013.[16]
Stephen Moyer performed the song as part of his role as Captain Georg von Trapp during the December 2013 television broadcast of The Sound of Music Live! on NBC.
The song is frequently performed by The von Trapps, the real life great-grandchildren of the Captain and Maria. It appears on their A Capella album and on their 2014 album, the latter of which is also a duet with Charmian Carr (who played Liesl in the movie).
A performance by Jeanette Olsson is used as the opening sequence music for the Amazon Original Series The Man in the High Castle.[17]
Singer/songwriter Lady Gaga performed the song along with a medley of others from the musical as part of a tribute to commemorate the 50th Anniversary of the film at the 87th Academy Awards.
Victor Garber, as his character Martin Stein impersonating Max Lorenz in a Nazi-run Parisian Nightclub, sang a cover of this song in Legends of Tomorrow.[18]
References[edit]
Jump up ^ "Was "Edelweiss" Based on an Austrian Folk Song?". Entertainment Urban Legends Revealed. July 25, 2012. Retrieved August 12, 2017.
^ Jump up to: a b Maslon, Lawrence (2007), The Sound of Music Companion, New York: Simon and Schuster, p. 177, ISBN 1416549544
Jump up ^ "Oscar Hammerstein II Is Dead". The New York Times. August 23, 1960. p. 1. Retrieved February 10, 2014.
Jump up ^ "How Do You Solve a Problem Like Maria". BBC. November 7, 2006. Retrieved February 10, 2014.
Jump up ^ Meriam, Ray (1999). Gebirgsjaeger: Germany's Mountain Troops. World War II Arsenal. 3. Merriam Press. p. 44. ISBN 1576381633.
Jump up ^ Steyn, Mark (December 5, 1997). "Where Have You Gone, Oscar Hammerstein?". Slate. Retrieved February 10, 2014.
Jump up ^ McLamore, Alyson (2004). Musical theater: an appreciation. Pearson Prentice Hall. p. 156. ISBN 0-13-048583-7.
Jump up ^ Fordin, Hugh (1995). Getting to know him: a biography of Oscar Hammerstein II. Da Capo Press. p. 102. ISBN 0-306-80668-1.
Jump up ^ Bikel, Theodore (2014). Theo: An Autobiography. University of Wisconsin Pres. p. 210. ISBN 9780299300548. Retrieved 22 July 2018.
Jump up ^ McIntyre, Dean (2001). "The Edelweiss Benediction: It's Still Against the Law". General Board of Discipleship. The United Methodist Church. Retrieved April 28, 2015.
Jump up ^ Dan Benedict, Jr. (1999). ""Edelweiss" - A Song We Love But Must Not Abuse". General Board of Discipleship. The United Methodist Church. Retrieved April 28, 2015.
Jump up ^ 閃電煞星 (全片) on YouTube
Jump up ^ 閃電煞星 (1967) Lightning Killer
Jump up ^ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 253. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
Jump up ^ Hollie Steel - 1st + 2nd Attempts, Britain's Got Talent Semi-Final on YouTube
Jump up ^ "I Dreamed A Dream – Hit Songs of Broadway". ABC. Retrieved 14 June 2013.
Jump up ^ "'Edelweiss': An American Song for Global Dystopia". Retrieved 24 November 2015.
Jump up ^ "I Can't Tell Which of These Two Moments From Last Night's Legends of Tomorrow I Love More". io9. Retrieved 24 October 2016.
show
v
t
e
Rodgers and Hammerstein
Stage musicals
Oklahoma!
Carousel
Allegro
South Pacific
The King and I
Me and Juliet
Pipe Dream
Flower Drum Song
The Sound of Music
A Grand Night for Singing
State Fair
Cinderella
Productions
I Remember Mama
Annie Get Your Gun
Happy Birthday
John Loves Mary
Show Boat
The Happy Time
Burning Bright
Films
State Fair (1945)
Oklahoma!
Carousel
The King and I
South Pacific
Flower Drum Song
State Fair (1962)
The Sound of Music
Cinderella
Television
Cinderella
The Sound of Music Live!
Songs
"Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin'"
"The Surrey with the Fringe on Top"
"Kansas City"
"I Cain't Say No"
"Many a New Day"
"It's a Scandal! It's a Outrage!"
"People Will Say We're in Love"
"Lonely Room"
"The Farmer and the Cowman"
"All Er Nuthin'"
"Oklahoma"
"If I Loved You"
"Soliloquy"
"You'll Never Walk Alone"
"It Might as Well Be Spring"
"That's for Me"
"A Fellow Needs a Girl"
"So Far"
"Some Enchanted Evening"
"There Is Nothing Like a Dame"
"Bali Ha'i"
"I'm Gonna Wash That Man Right Outa My Hair"
"I'm in Love with a Wonderful Guy"
"Younger Than Springtime"
"Happy Talk"
"You've Got to Be Carefully Taught"
"I Whistle a Happy Tune"
"Hello, Young Lovers"
"Getting to Know You"
"We Kiss in a Shadow"
"Something Wonderful"
"I Have Dreamed"
"Shall We Dance?"
"No Other Love"
"I Enjoy Being a Girl"
"The Sound of Music"
"Maria"
"My Favorite Things"
"Do-Re-Mi"
"Sixteen Going on Seventeen"
"The Lonely Goatherd"
"Climb Ev'ry Mountain"
"So Long, Farewell"
"No Way to Stop It"
"Edelweiss"
Related articles
"Something Good"
The Sound of Music (1965 soundtrack)
The Sound of Music: Music from the NBC Television Event
show
v
t
e
Trapp Family Singers
Members
Maria von Trapp
Georg von Trapp
Rupert
Agathe
Maria Franziska
Werner
Hedwig
Johanna
Martina
Johannes
Memoir
The Story of the Trapp Family Singers
Films
The Trapp Family (1956)
The Trapp Family in America (1958)
The Sound of Music (1965)
The von Trapp Family: A Life of Music (2015)
Other adaptations
The Sound of Music (1959 musical)
Trapp Family Story (1991 anime)
The Sound of Music Live! (2013)
The Sound of Music Live (2015)
Songs
"The Sound of Music"
"Maria"
"My Favorite Things"
"Do-Re-Mi"
"Sixteen Going on Seventeen"
"The Lonely Goatherd"
"Climb Ev'ry Mountain"
"No Way to Stop It"
"So Long, Farewell"
"Edelweiss"
"Something Good"
Albums
The Groovy Sound of Music (1964)
The Sound of Music (1965 soundtrack)
The Sound of Music: Music from the NBC Television Event (2013)
Related
Elisabeth von Trapp
The von Trapps
Trapp Family Lodge
Trapp Family Austrian Relief
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Edelweiss_(song)&oldid=864844062"
Categories:
1959 songs
Harry Connick Jr. songs
Hollie Steel songs
Songs from The Sound of Music
Songs with music by Richard Rodgers
Songs with lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II
Songs about plants
Hidden categories:
Wikipedia articles needing clarification from January 2017
Articles with too many examples
Wikipedia articles with style issues from July 2017
Articles needing additional references from February 2014
All articles needing additional references
Navigation menu
Personal tools
Not logged in
Talk
Contributions
Create account
Log in
Namespaces
Article
Talk
Variants
Views
Read
Edit
View history
More
Search
Navigation
Main page
Contents
Featured content
Current events
Random article
Donate to Wikipedia
Wikipedia store
Interaction
Help
About Wikipedia
Community portal
Recent changes
Contact page
Tools
What links here
Related changes
Upload file
Special pages
Permanent link
Page information
Wikidata item
Cite this page
Print/export
Create a book
Download as PDF
Printable version
Languages
Español
Français
Italiano
עברית
Nederlands
日本語
Norsk
Svenska
Türkçe
中文
3 more
Edit links
This page was last edited on 19 October 2018, at 21:09 (UTC).
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.
Privacy policy
About Wikipedia
Disclaimers
Contact Wikipedia
Developers
Cookie statement
Mobile view
Enable previews

key: html

type: local

value: div

attrs: id class

values: mw-page-base noprint

values: mw-head-base noprint

value: a

attrs: id class lang

values: firstHeading firstHeading en

values: siteSub noprint

attrs: class href

values: mw-jump-link #mw-head

values: mw-jump-link #p-search

attrs: href class title

values:
/wiki/Edelweiss_(disambiguation)
mw-disambig
Edelweiss (disambiguation)

attrs: role class

values:
note
hatnote navigation-not-searchable

value: th

attrs: colspan class style

value: tr

attrs: href title

value: td

value: span

attrs: alt src width height class srcset data-file-width data-file-height

values:
/wiki/Leontopodium_alpinum
mw-redirect
Leontopodium alpinum

values:
/wiki/Georg_Ludwig_von_Trapp
mw-redirect
Georg Ludwig von Trapp

values: checkbox button toctogglecheckbox toctogglecheckbox display:none

values: Edit section: Misconceptions about the song

values:
/wiki/Austrian_Army
mw-redirect
Austrian Army

values: The text near this tag may need clarification or removal of jargon. (January 2017)

values:
noprint Inline-Template
margin-left:0.1em; white-space:nowrap;

attrs: alt src width height srcset data-file-width data-file-height

values:
plainlinks metadata ambox ambox-content
presentation

values: Help:Introduction to referencing with Wiki Markup/1

values: plainlinks metadata ambox ambox-content ambox-Refimprove

values:
/wiki/German_American
mw-redirect
German American

values:
/wiki/Government_of_Iran
mw-redirect
Government of Iran

values:
/wiki/The_Voice_Australia
mw-redirect
The Voice Australia

values:
/wiki/Celia_Pavey
mw-redirect
Celia Pavey

values:
/wiki/Von_Trapp_Children
mw-redirect
Von Trapp Children

values: Dream a Little Dream (Pink Martini and the von Trapps album)

values:
/wiki/General_Board_of_Discipleship
mw-redirect
General Board of Discipleship

values:
/wiki/The_United_Methodist_Church
mw-redirect
The United Methodist Church

values:
/wiki/Guinness_World_Records_Limited
mw-redirect
Guinness World Records Limited

values: -moz-column-width: 30em; -webkit-column-width: 30em; column-width: 30em; list-style-type: decimal;

values:
/wiki/A_Fellow_Needs_a_Girl
mw-redirect
A Fellow Needs a Girl

values: nowraplinks collapsible autocollapse navbox-inner mw-collapsible mw-made-collapsible mw-collapsed

values: Template:The Story of the Trapp Family Singers

values: Template talk:The Story of the Trapp Family Singers

values:
/wiki/Maria_(1959_song)
mw-redirect
Maria (1959 song)

values: Category:Songs with music by Richard Rodgers

values: Category:Songs with lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II

values: Category:Wikipedia articles needing clarification from January 2017

values: Category:Articles with too many examples

values: Category:Wikipedia articles with style issues from July 2017

values: Category:Articles needing additional references from February 2014

values: Category:All articles needing additional references

values: Discussion about edits from this IP address [ctrl-alt-n]

values: A list of edits made from this IP address [ctrl-alt-y]

values: You are encouraged to create an account and log in; however, it is not mandatory

values: You're encouraged to log in; however, it's not mandatory. [ctrl-alt-o]

values:
/wiki/Edelweiss_(song)
View the content page [ctrl-alt-c]
c

values: Discussion about the content page [ctrl-alt-t]

values: p-namespaces navigation vectorTabs p-namespaces-label

values:
p-variants
navigation
vectorMenu emptyPortlet
p-variants-label

values: Past revisions of this page [ctrl-alt-h]

values: p-views navigation vectorTabs p-views-label

values:
p-cactions
navigation
vectorMenu emptyPortlet
p-cactions-label

values:
mw-wiki-logo
/wiki/Main_Page
Visit the main page

values:
/wiki/Main_Page
Visit the main page [ctrl-alt-z]
z

values: Featured content – the best of Wikipedia

values: Find background information on current events

values:
/wiki/Special:Random
Load a random article [ctrl-alt-x]
x

values: portal navigation p-navigation p-navigation-label

values: Guidance on how to use and edit Wikipedia

values: About the project, what you can do, where to find things

values: A list of recent changes in the wiki [ctrl-alt-r]

values: portal navigation p-interaction p-interaction-label

values: List of all English Wikipedia pages containing links to this page [ctrl-alt-j]

values: אדלווייס (שיר) – Hebrew

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-he
display: none;

values:
interlanguage-link interwiki-nl
display: none;

values: エーデルワイス (音楽) – Japanese

values: /static/images/wikimedia-button-1.5x.png 1.5x, /static/images/wikimedia-button-2x.png 2x

values: /static/images/poweredby_mediawiki_132x47.png 1.5x, /static/images/poweredby_mediawiki_176x62.png 2x

values:
suggestions
display: none; font-size: 13px;

values: mediawiki ltr sitedir-ltr mw-hide-empty-elt ns-0 ns-subject page-Edelweiss_song rootpage-Edelweiss_song skin-vector action-view