“Doe, a deer, a female deer. (Re!) ray, a drop of golden sun…” Many high school choir students have learned to sing scales with the wildly popular, time-tested song “Do-Re-Mi” from the classic movie “Sound of Music” starring Julie Andrews.
The family featured in the 1965 film adaptation of the original Broadway production, the von Trapps, did not fade away over time.
Instead, the descendants of those featured in the movie are continuing the family tradition and singing with grace and poise still today.
Maria Augusta von Trapp, the matriarch of the musical family, shared their amazing experiences in her memoir, “The Story of the Trapp Family Singers.” She was born on a train and left to the care of her father and aunt after her mother died when she was just two years old. Maria came to join the von Trapp family in 1926 as a tutor for one of the 10 children who was recovering from scarlet fever.
She married Captain Georg von Trapp in 1927, and 11 years later, they escaped from Austria after her husband refused a commission from Germany’s navy during World War II. Their arrival in the United States would’ve been as ordinary as the rest of the refugees flooding into New York, except for the way they secured their financial foothold in a new country: with their voices.
In the 1940s, they traveled the country singing as the Trapp Family Singers.
Eventually, they settled in Stowe, Vermont, on a beautiful farm with majestic mountains that reminded them of their native country of Austria. In 1950, they began inviting guests to stay at their 27-room family home/lodge.
Sadly, the home was engulfed with fire in 1980, but was rebuilt into the new Trapp Family Lodge complete with 96 rooms on 2,500 acres. It was complete with many items featured in the film, including the gazebo.
“As you can see, this is breathtaking.”
“These ‘kids’ showed up at the office where I work in Columbus, Ohio, sang for our staff out of the goodness of their hearts. This was completely an impromptu performance. They were extremely humble and lovely people.”
As evidenced in the video, the von Trapp great-grandchildren have the most beautiful, harmonious voices. While they each perform independently, they regularly come together for special guest appearances such as this.
YouTube users marveled over how superb the small group sounded.
Johyn Smith described it as “beautiful and touching.”
“Beautiful, tight harmonies. What a wonderful legacy!!!”
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