"Edelweiss"

Christopher Plummer singing
"Edelweiss" in Sound of Music (1965)

By Peter Y. Chou
WisdomPortal.com

Bulgaria 1293:
Edelweiss (10-9-1963)

Christopher Plummer sings "Edelweiss"
in the Sound of Music film (1965)

Switzerland B138
Edelweiss (12-18-1948)

Preface: For Song #30, I've selected "Edelweiss" sang by Christopher Plummer in the musical movie Sound of Music (1965). This tender ballad is sung to (and about) a white flower Edelweiss (Leontopodium nivale), native to the Austrian landscape, which is a sign of national pride. Captain von Trapp sings it first to his children, & then later in a public concert. The song was created for the 1959 Broadway production of The Sound of Music, as a song for the character Captain Georg von Trapp. In the musical, Captain von Trapp and his family sing this song during the concert near the end of Act II. It is a statement of Austrian patriotism in the face of the pressure put upon him to join the navy of Nazi Germany following the Anschluss (Nazi annexation of their homeland). It is also Captain von Trapp's subliminal goodbye to his beloved homeland, using the flower as a symbol of his loyalty to Austria. This was the final song of Rodgers & Hammerstein's musical collaboration as well as the last song written by Oscar Hammerstein II , who died in August 1960. (Lyrics). Stamps show Edelweiss flower from Bulgaria & Switzerland.

[CAPTAIN]
Edelweiss, Edelweiss.
Every morning you greet me.
Small and white, clean and bright.
You look happy to meet me.
Blossom of snow, may you bloom and grow.
Bloom and grow forever.
Edelweiss, Edelweiss.
Bless my homeland forever.

[CAPTAIN, LIESL]
Edelweiss, Edelweiss
Every morning you greet me
Small and white, clean and bright
You look happy to meet me

[CAPTAIN]
Blossom of snow, may you bloom and grow
Bloom and grow forever
Edelweiss, Edelweiss
Bless my homeland forever.