Thursday, October 06, 2011

Traveling Thursdays: Salzburg & The Sound of Music



Back in my High School days I was fortunate enough to take a whirlwind European trip, including a day in Salzburg. The photos here were taken on a 126 camera back in July 1981. For you "Sound of Music" nuts, this post should be right up your alley; for the rest of you, just enjoy the beautiful scenery.

From what I remember 30 years ago, it took 3 homes to create the Von Trapp family villa on film. One house for the rear view (shot #1 shows that home's front), one home for the lake scenes (shot #2), and another home for the rear views of the house. Imagine being the actor doing your lines with the lake behind you to an imaginary actor who was actually being filmed a few miles away at a different home.



Here is the gazebo on the property that most people associate with "Sixteen Going on Seventeen." Not to burst the bubble, but that number was actually filmed on a soundstage. This gazebo was only seen briefly in an actual outdoor shot of the property.



The rest of this set shows photos of Salzburg, which changed little between the time of filming and when I captured these shots. Most of the scenery you can see in the movie when Maria (Julie Andrews) is singing "I Have Confidence" as well as when she joins the children with "Do-Re-Mi."











Hozenzollern Castle is high on the hill:



You can see it in the opening shots of the movie, which I captured at my recent visit to the Hollywood Bowl:











The Abbey Gate, where the children beg the nuns to let them talk to Maria. Apparently a fake rope was put here by the film crew so that the children could ring the fake bell. The nuns liked it so much that it stayed. At least that's the story we were told. Sorry for the blurry shot; couldn't retake it because this was pre digital. Imagine having to wait a few weeks to see how your photos on a once-in-a-lifetime trip turned out?!?





A statue of Mozart:



The birthplace of Mozart:



Mirabell Gardens is the site of the grand finale to "Do-Re-Mi," when the children inch up the steps.





One day I hope to return, as Salzburg was my favorite city of the trip.



See more Daveland photography on my photography web page.

3 comments:

  1. Terrific photos of Salzburg! The city looks beautiful. The Sound of Music is one of my "favorite things" and now I really want to go visit the city where it was filmed. As a kid, when I wasn't watching the film, I was probably listening to the soundtrack.

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  2. olddisneylandfan1:12 PM

    I had to chuckle. I too visited Salzburg on a whirlwind high school tour in 1973. Many of my photos (also on 126 film) are nearly identical to yours!

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  3. Saltzburg is a beautiful city, I agree with olddisneyfan and you on this one.

    Makes me want to get out my 1985 album. We walked up to that fort and looked out that window.

    I had never seen the movie before our visit. I wish I had, it would have made the trip even more interesting.

    I did notice how many places played off of the movie, SOM this, SOM that, but nothing like Tombstone AZ where every saloon has Wyatt Earp's gun.

    Thanks for sharing these.

    JG

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