Maria Lyrics - the Nuns

"The Sound of Music" is one of the show tunes from the 1959 musical of Rodgers and Hammerstein with the same title. In the opening lines of the song, the character Maria relishes the beauty of the Austrian hills. It is here that the song depicts Maria, who is so very close to nature, being pulled in two different directions: one is her love for the hills and the other the duties in connection to the Nonnberg Abbey. The musical speaks of the transformation of Maria from a postulant, doubtful about her vocation, to taking care of the seven children of the widowed Austro-Hungarian Navy submarine captain, Captain von Trapp, as their governess.

The song "Maria," however, has the nuns of Nonnberg Abbey discussing, and condemning, Maria's unsuitability to be a postulant because of her free spirit, in that they call her a "flibbertigibbet," challenging like the catching of a cloud or the holding of a moonbeam. Oscar Hammerstein II crafted the lyrics in such a way that it seems rather simple and sweet, defining Maria's character as perceived through the eyes of the nuns who find her behavior quite confusing yet lovable.

The first song, "The Sound of Music," narrates the aspiration for one's own and freedom from the living world, through the conflict between one's personal desire and duty. Her love for the hills and how she hears music while brooks are curving reflect the internal struggle of this lady, and this would set the stage of her transformation as indicated by this foreshadowing made by the song. This song gets Maria into her transformation and changes with the von Trapp family again as music and joy are renewed. This is a firm juxtaposition of the carefree spirit and responsibility that Maria's character represents, which the song of the nuns about Maria reflects: a bridge between both worlds—a strict and disciplined life in the abbey and the world free and expressive outside the wall of the abbey. The song of the nuns about Maria reflects a difficulty in understanding and holding a tight person with such a strong spirit within the exact framework of the abbey.

In conclusion, "The Sound of Music" is a musical on themes of freedom, personal growth, and how music and love can change life under the literal meaning of these words. Maria's journey from the abbey to the house of von Trapp and her impact on the family summed up in itself the search for one's place in the world and the courage to follow one's heart.

The musical, along with its songs, has acquired an iconic status and has been an enrapturing of the viewers through its upbeat message and melodic charm. The distraught history and the lies put into the account of the musical, like the changed story of the von Trapp family for dramatic effect, give many layers of intrigue to it as a backdrop against which World War II is played out in Austria.

The Sound of Music remains one of the most enduringly popular musicals ever produced, and songs such as "Maria" and the title song, "The Sound of Music," have been converted into anthems of hope and the sheer joy of life.