"Maria", sometimes known as "How Do You Solve a Problem Like Maria?", is a
show tune
A show tune is a song originally written as part of the score of a work of musical theatre or musical film, especially if the piece in question has become a standard, more or less detached in most people's minds from the original context.
Th ...
from the
Rodgers and Hammerstein
Rodgers and Hammerstein was a theater-writing team of composer Richard Rodgers (1902–1979) and lyricist-dramatist Oscar Hammerstein II (1895–1960), who together created a series of innovative and influential American musicals. Their musical ...
musical
Musical is the adjective of music.
Musical may also refer to:
* Musical theatre, a performance art that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance
* Musical film
Musical film is a film genre in which songs by the Character (arts), charac ...
''
The Sound of Music
''The Sound of Music'' is a musical with music by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II, and a book by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse. It is based on the 1949 memoir of Maria von Trapp, '' The Story of the Trapp Family Singers''. ...
'' (
1959
Events
January
* January 1 – Cuba: Fulgencio Batista flees Havana when the forces of Fidel Castro advance.
* January 2 – Soviet lunar probe Luna 1 is the first human-made object to attain escape velocity from Earth. It reaches the ...
).
Background
This song is sung by the nuns at
Nonnberg Abbey
Nonnberg Abbey () is a Order of Saint Benedict, Benedictine monastery in Salzburg, Austria. Founded by Saint Rupert of Salzburg, it is the oldest continuously existing convent, nunnery in the German-speaking world. The monastery complex is today ...
, who are exasperated with Maria for being a "
flibbertigibbet"; they say that she is too frolicsome for the decorous and austere life at the Abbey.
The titular question is paraphrased with metaphorical questions, such as: "How do you catch a cloud and pin it down?"; "How do you keep a wave upon the sand?"; and "How do you hold a moonbeam in your hand?". These rhetorical questions on problems that cannot be solved act as proof that a problem like Maria is equally
intractable.
When
Oscar Hammerstein II
Oscar Greeley Clendenning Hammerstein II (; July 12, 1895 – August 23, 1960) was an American lyricist, librettist, theatrical producer, and director in musical theater for nearly 40 years. He won eight Tony Awards and two Academy Award ...
wrote the lyric for this song, he followed the lead from a line in the dialogue that
Howard Lindsay
Howard Lindsay, born Herman Nelke, (March 29, 1889 – February 11, 1968) was an American playwright, librettist, director, actor and theatrical producer. He is best known for his writing work as part of the collaboration of Lindsay and Crouse ...
and
Russel Crouse
Russel Crouse (20 February 1893 – 3 April 1966) was an American playwright and librettist, best known for his work in the Broadway writing partnership of Lindsay and Crouse.
Life and career
Born in Findlay, Ohio, Crouse was the son of Sarah (n ...
wrote in their script, describing Maria's flighty ways in the Abbey. In particular, he was taken by the detail of her wearing curlers in her hair under her
wimple
A wimple is a medieval form of female headcovering, formed of a large piece of cloth worn draped around the neck and chin, covering the top of the head; it was usually made from white linen or silk. Its use developed in early medieval Europe ...
.
Hammerstein asked if he could incorporate their dialogue into the song, and they allowed him to do so because: "If you tell a story in a song, it's so much better."
When writing the lyric, Hammerstein knew he needed adjectives for the nuns to describe Maria. He admitted that his vocabulary was never big, but the simple adjectives he used to describe Maria's character proved a success.
In popular culture
This song gave its title to the
Andrew Lloyd Webber
Andrew Lloyd Webber, Baron Lloyd-Webber (born 22 March 1948) is an English composer and impresario of musical theatre. Several of his musicals have run for more than a decade both in the West End theatre, West End and on Broadway theatre, Broad ...
reality TV
Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring ordinary people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 199 ...
series ''
How Do You Solve a Problem Like Maria?'' (2006), in which TV viewers voted for a contestant to play the lead role of
Maria von Trapp
Maria Augusta von Trapp Order of the Holy Sepulchre (Catholic), DHS (; 26 January 1905 – 28 March 1987), often styled as "Baroness", was the stepmother and matriarch of the Trapp Family, Trapp Family Singers. She wrote ''The Story of the ...
in his London revival of ''The Sound of Music.''
Connie Fisher
Connie Fisher (born 17 June 1983) is a British actress, singer and TV presenter, who won the BBC One talent contest '' How Do You Solve a Problem Like Maria?''
On 15 November 2006, she opened to excellent reviews in the part of Maria von Trapp i ...
won the TV series and was cast as Maria in the London revival of the show that opened in November 2006 at the
London Palladium
The London Palladium () is a Grade II* West End theatre located on Argyll Street, London, in Soho. The theatre was designed by Frank Matcham and opened in 1910. The auditorium holds 2,286 people. Hundreds of stars have played there, many wit ...
.
See also
*''
How Do You Solve a Problem Like Maria?''
References
External links
1959 songs
Songs with music by Richard Rodgers
Songs with lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II
Andy Williams songs
Songs from The Sound of Music
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