The Sound of Music: 60 years of hope, joy and healing in dark times

The Sound of Music, a film based on the real-life escape of a family from Nazi-occupied Austria, is celebrating its 60th anniversary. 

The event is being marked by actors and fans in the city of Salzburg, home to the real-life Von Trapp family.

"I experienced from early on how important music is," Elisabeth von Trapp, granddaughter of Georg and Maria von Trapp, told CGTN Europe. "The message of hope and of joy or of celebration through song, brings healing to the world."

At exactly where the dramatic finale of the Hollywood movie was filmed, Austria's Felsenreitschule theater venue served once again as a stage commemorating what might be the world's most famous singing family. 

The story is set in World War II and since its premiere in 1965, The Sound of Music has captivated viewers worldwide. Millions of fans have made their way to the place where the story of the singing Von Trapp family began – the Austrian city of Salzburg.

'It's the memory, it stayed with us,' says Grace Chung, a fan from Hong Kong.

Every year, the film's shooting locations attract over 300,000 fans, eager to learn more about Georg and Maria von Trapp. 

As a successful World War I submarine commander, Georg von Trapp was expected to serve the Nazi cause. Instead he took his family to the United States where they started new lives as the Trapp family singers.

"The story of our family is really of resilience and looking forward and always moving forward," Kristina, another Von Trapp granddaughter, told CGTN Europe. "I feel really grateful to be a part of something that is like that."

In the 1950s, a book Maria had written about the family's story, was first turned into a German film, then a Broadway musical. Finally in the 1960s, Hollywood conquered the world's movie theaters with its own adaptation – The Sound of Music.

As fans celebrate 60 years of the Hollywood classic, Kristina and Elisabeth von Trapp are hoping the film will continue to win over audiences with its message of hope and joy, even in times of conflict.