There are a *lot* of recordings of this show, but these are the three that I own for now!
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Original Broadway Cast. Like most people of my generation, I knew the movie long before I ever heard the Broadway cast recording. So naturally, it took me a little while to get used to the different voices, the different songs, and the different feel of it. But I really enjoy this album! Mary Martin is a wonderful Maria, and I like Theodore Bikel as well, although he doesn’t have the same edge as the Captain that Christopher Plummer has. I like the songs that aren’t in the movie, especially that the Baroness is a much more developed part, and there is a bit more development of the Nazi presence. If you enjoy this show, this is definitely a worthwhile investment. |
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Original Movie Soundtrack. Some of my roommates in university actually got into trouble with this recording – they were singing along with it so loudly that the people upstairs complained to building management. 🙂 I honestly can’t remember a time when I didn’t know of these songs as they are sung on this CD. So any review I might give of this recording is ultimately tinged by that fact. It is just something comfortable – you can put it on and be completely familiar with it. Julie Andrews is brilliant, of course, and the rest of the cast is very good as well. If you like the movie, you can’t go wrong with this recording. |
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Broadway Revival Cast. This recording is kind of a mix of the previous two – the show has been adapted since the original version to include some of the moments in the film that have become classics, but it also retains some of the original moments that were left out of the film, such as the songs between Max and Elsa. The cast here is stellar, particularly Rebecca Luker as Maria and Patti Cohenour as the Mother Abbess (she does a beautiful “Climb Every Mountain”!). Another wonderful recording. |