The Hills Are Alive - Test Your Knowledge of The Sound of Music

By: Scott Nordlund
Estimated Completion Time
5 min
The Hills Are Alive - Test Your Knowledge of The Sound of Music
Image: tmdb

About This Quiz

Journey back to the Alps and test your knowledge of the Sound of Music, set in Austria in 1938. Relive the drama, the danger, and the beautiful music that made this movie great.
The movie was released in 1965 but set in what year?
1938
The Sound of Music was released in 1965, but set in 1938. The movie is set in Austria right before the Nazis invaded. The movie deals with the subsequent invasion.
1935
1942
1956

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The movie opens with the main protagonist singing, "The hills are alive with the sound of music / With songs they have sung for a _______ years / The hills fill my heart with the sound of music / My heart wants to sing every song it _______."
thousand; hears
The protagonist is singing the title song, The Sound of Music. The movie is a musical. The main song was composed by Richard Rodgers, with lyrics written by Oscar Hammerstein II.
hundred; day
day; day
second; ounce

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The Sound of Music was Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein's _______ musical.
first
second
third
last
Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein partnered for multiple musicals. They wrote and produced Oklahoma!, South Pacific, and The King and I, among others. The Sound of Music was their last collaboration. In 1960, Hammerstein died from stomach cancer.

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The movie was based on what?
a book
a play and book
The Sound of Music was inspired by a play that opened in 1959. It was based on two German films about the von Trapp family, as well as a memoir by Maria von Trapp. The musically inclined von Trapps from Austria are the real life inspiration for The Sound of Music.
a screenplay
a tv show

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The main protagonist, Maria, is played by which actress?
Romy Schneider
Vivien Leigh
Julie Andrews
Julie Andrews plays the main protagonist, Maria, in The Sound of Music. Julie Andrews might not have been cast, if not for Walt Disney. Richard Rodgers, the composer, knew that Julie Andrews would be the perfect Maria for the role after she auditioned for one of his musicals back in 1956. She ended up starring in My Fair Lady instead. No one was convinced that Andrews would work well on a movie screen in color until Walt Disney showed them clips from the post-production of Mary Poppins, and then Andrews was cast.
Marilyn Monroe

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The male lead, Captain von Trapp, is played by which actor?
John Wayne
Cary Grant
Jack Lemmon
Christopher Plummer
Christopher Plummer played Captain von Trapp, a retired Austrian naval officer. Plummer actually hated the film so much that he called it The Sound of Mucus. He drank and ate away his sorrows in Salzburg, which caused him to gain so much weight his costumes had to be let out. He also admitted on the DVD commentary that he was drunk when filming the music festival scene.

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How many von Trapp children are there in the movie?
5
7
There are 7 von Trapp children in the movie. The Mother Abbess believes Maria would be happier outside the abbey. She sends Maria to the villa of retired naval officer Captain Georg von Trapp to be the governess to his children.
4
2

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What are the names of the von Trapp children in the movie?
Liesl, Friedrich, Louisa, Kurt, Brigitta, Marta, and Gretl
Captain von Trapp had 7 children with his first wife. In real life, once he married Maria, they had three more children.
Liesl, Friedrich, Michael, Julia, Daniel, Anna, and Kurt
Marta, Stefan, Manuel, Matthias, Lisa, Alex, and Matteo
Stefan, Laura, Manuel, Vanessa, David, Katharina, and Sarah

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The Sound of Music story is partially based on Maria von Trapp's memoir, The Story of the Trapp Family Singers, published in 1949. She wrote the book for what reason?
to leave a legacy for her children
to help support her family and promote her family's singing group, following the death of her husband Georg in 1947
Maria von Trapp wrote a book about her family to help support them financially. Her husband had died of lung cancer on May 30, 1947, and they were left without a second income. She wrote the book to help promote her children's singing careers.
to record her memories
to tell everyone her family's story

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At the beginning of the movie, Maria is studying to become a nun. What is the name of the abbey where she is studying?
Nonnberg Abbey
Maria loves music and the mountains. Her lack of discipline regarding her studies gets her into trouble with the nuns. She is eventually sent to be governess for Captain Georg von Trapp's seven children.
Carmelite Monastery
Mount Saint Mary's Convent and Academy
St. Joseph Parish Complex

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Who sends Maria to be a governess to the von Trapp children?
Mother Mary
The Mother Abbess
The Mother Abbess sends Maria to the von Trapp villa. She believes that Maria would be happier outside the abbey,
Mother Judy
Mother Isabel

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In the first part of the movie, while the Captain is away in Vienna, Maria makes play clothes for the children from what?
Curtains
Maria makes the children play clothes from old curtains. The curtains were going to be thrown out and she decided to reuse the material instead. She leads them around Salzburg and the surrounding mountains, and she teaches them how to sing
Material from the village shop
Material she found in storage
Old clothes

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When the Captain returns to the villa with Baroness Elsa Schraeder, a wealthy socialite, and their mutual friend, Max Detweiler, they are greeted by Maria and the children returning from where?
singing on the hills
going to town
a boat ride on the lake that concludes when their boat overturns
Captain von Trapp is very displeased by his children's clothes and activities. The Captain orders Maria to return to the abbey. At the same time, he hears singing from inside the house and sees his children singing for the Baroness. He is filled with happiness and joins in. After they finish, he apologizes to Maria and begs her to stay.
going for a walk on the grounds

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Who is so impressed with the children's singing that he wants to enter them in the upcoming Salzburg Festival?
Friedrich von Trapp
Kurt von Trapp
Max Detweiler
Although the suggestion is immediately rejected by the Captain, Max is still intrigued. He persists and the Captain insists that he does not allow his children to sing in public. He does agree, however, to organize a grand party at the villa.
Franz, the butler

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What dance do Maria and the Captain enjoy on the night of the party at the villa?
Ländler folk dance
On the night of the party at the villa, the Captain notices Maria teaching Kurt the traditional Ländler folk dance. He cuts in and partners with Maria for the rest of the song. There is no denying their chemistry at this point!
Polka
Waltz
Fox Trot

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Maria is confused about her feelings after she dances with the Captain. What does she do?
Hides in her room for the rest of the night
Runs away in the middle of the night
Hides her jealousy and returns to the abbey
Maria is jealous of the relationship between the Captain and the Baroness. She leaves the villa and returns to the abbey. Mother Abbess learns that Maria has stayed in seclusion to avoid her feelings for the Captain. Mother Abbess encourages her to return to the Captain and tell him how she feels. When she does, she learns about the Captain's engagement to the Baroness and agrees to stay until they find a replacement governess.
Learns to forget her love for the Captain

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The Captain's feelings for Maria, however, have not changed. What does he decide to do?
break off his engagement with the Baroness and marry Maria instead
Captain von Trapp finally realizes his true feelings for Maria. He breaks off his engagement with the Baroness. Maria and the Captain then get married.
leave town to avoid love or conflict with either woman
tell his friend Max to marry Maria instead
run away and hide in the mountains

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While Maria and the Captain are on their honeymoon, what does Max do, in secret?
takes care of the children
takes the children to the hills
enters the children in the Salzburg Festival, against their father's wishes
While the Captain and Maria are traveling on their honeymoon, Max enters the children into the Salzburg Festival. When the couple learn that Austria has been annexed into the Third Reich in the Anschluss, they return to their home quickly. A telegram awaits, informing the Captain that he is to report to the German Naval Headquarters in Bremerhaven, to accept a commission in the German Navy.
takes the children for a boat ride

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Strongly opposed to the Nazis and the Anschluss, the Captain tells his family what?
they must leave Austria immediately
The Captain decided that the family must leave Austria immediately. That night, while attempting to leave, the von Trapp family is stopped by German soldiers waiting outside their villa. They are questioned and maintain they are heading to the Salzburg Festival to perform. The soldiers insist on escorting them to the festival, then they will escort the Captain to Bremerhaven.
they have no choice but to pack for a future move
they are packing to run away to the seaside
they must barricade themselves in the house and no one is to leave

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The family reluctantly perform at the festival. They escape one by one during the last number to where?
The abbey
The Mother Abbess hides the family in a nearby cemetery crypt. Nazi soldiers soon arrive and search the abbey, but the family is able to escape using the caretaker's car. The soldiers rush back to their cars but realize the nuns have removed parts of their engines. The family is able to escape over the mountains to Switzerland.
The village
The mountains
A school

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Julie Andrews learned how to play what instrument especially for the film?
Guitar
Julie Andrews learned how to play the guitar for the movie. As the movie is a musical, there are numerous points where she brings out the guitar and sings for the children.
Flute
Banjo
Spoons

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In real life, how did the von Trapps escape Austria?
by going over the mountains to Swizterland
by taking the train to Italy
The real von Trapps did not escape over the mountains. Had they done that, they would have ended up in Germany. The real family took a train to Italy.
by driving over the border
by biking over the border

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How historically accuarate is the movie, when compared with the real von Trapp story?
not very accurate
The movie is not historically accurate. There were ten von Trapp children; not seven. The real Maria von Trapp left the convent to tutor one child, not to be governess to ALL the children. She and Georg von Trapp were married 11 years before the Nazis took over Austria. Maria wrote in her book that she did not love her husband when she married him. She stated: "I really and truly was not in love. I liked him but didn't love him. However, I loved the children, so, in a way, I really married the children.”
mostly accurate
completely accurate
there was no real von Trapp family

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Financially, how did the movie perform for 20th Century Fox?
bankrupted the company
minor success
saved the company
After the movie Cleopatra, 20th Century Fox was close to bankruptcy. The Sound of Music was so successful, it surpassed Gone With The Wind as the number-one box office draw to date. Today, the Sound of Music is the third-highest-grossing film of all time.
broke even on cost to produce

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The Sound of Music won how many Oscars?
5
The Sound of Music won 5 Oscars. The movie won Best Picture, Best Director, Best Sound Mixing, Best Film Editing, and Best Music. It was a total success.
1
2
4

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The song Edelweiss was written by Oscar Hammerstein at what point during the creative process?
second
first
last
The song was written for the musical and is little known in Austria. The song was the last that Oscar Hammerstein II wrote before he died in 1960. It is forever linked to the movie.
fourth

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Did Christopher Plummer sing his own songs in the movie?
he did not
Originally, Christopher Plummer did sing his own lyrics in songs during filming. It was ultimately decided to dub all of his lyrics.
he did
he sang one song
he sang half of his songs

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Maria's wedding train was how long?
14 feet long
When Maria married Captain von Trapp, her wedding train was 14 feet long. She married the Captain in a church in the village.
10 feet long
8 feet long
6 feet long

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The lyrics to the song, My Favorite Things, list whose favorites?
Maria's
The song My Favourite things is a reference to things Maria loves. It lists things such as "whiskers on kittens, bright copper kettles and warm woolen mittens." These are the things she selects to fill her mind with when times are bad.
Captain von Trapp's
The family dog's
The butler's

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Finish this lyric from Do-Re-Mi: "Doe! - a deer, a female deer / Ray! - a drop of golden sun, / Me! - a name I call myself / Far! - a long long way to run / So! - a ____________."
candle burning
red wheelbarrow
needle pulling thread
The lyrics teach the solfège syllables by linking them with English homophones. As the song concludes, "When you know the notes to sing, you can sing most anything."
deer

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In 2015, The Sound of Music celebrated its 50th anniversary. At the Academy Awards of 2015, pop singer Lady Gaga sang a medley of which songs?
RESPECT, Baby Got Back, Ain't No Mountain High Enough
The Sound of Music, Edelweiss, My Favorite Things, Climb Every Mountain
The appearance was to mark the 50th anniversary of the movie. It is believed that Lady Gaga did not know Andrews was there. The moment captured is priceless when Andrews and Gaga interact.
What's Love Got to Do with It?, When a Man Loves a Woman
Sweet Caroline, I Will Love You Forever

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The film employed how many extras?
100
3,500
4,500
The filmed employed 4,500 extras. Principal photography began on March 26, 1964, and closed on September 1, 1964. A total of eighty-three scenes were filmed in just over five months.
2,000

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The movie is how long?
2h 54m
The Sound of Music is 2 hours, 54 minutes long. Attribute the length to the long filming schedule, the complete plot, or what you may. It is one of the longest classic movies ever produced.
1h 30m
90 mins
2h 15m

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The movie was filmed in the United States and which other country?
Austria
The Sound of Music was filmed from March 26 through September 1, 1964. External scenes were shot on location in Salzburg, Austria, and the surrounding region, and interior scenes were filmed at the 20th Century Fox studios in California.
France
Germany
Switzerland

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In the boating scene, which actress nearly drowned when she fell in the water?
Debbie Turner (Marta)
Kym Karath (Gretl)
The scene originally called for Julie Andrews to carry her out of the water, as Kym Karath couldn't swim, but Andrews fell out of the wrong side of the boat. In fact, they had to stop production in order to rescue Kym. In the movie, you'll see Heather Menzies (Louisa) carrying her out.
Charmian Carr (Liesl)
Heather Menzies (Louisa)

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