From “The Sound of Music”, 1959
Words by Oscar Hammerstein 2nd
Music by Richard Rodgers
The sheet music:
Accompaniment by James Pitt-Payne:
Lyrics
She climbs a tree and scrapes her knee
Her dress has got a tear
She waltzes on her way to mass
And whistles on the stair
And underneath her wimple
She has curlers in her hair
Maria’s not an asset to the abbey
She’s always late for chapel
But her penitence is real
She’s always late for everything
Except for every meal
From all of which, I take it
That you very firmly feel
Maria’s not an asset to the abbey
I’d like to say a word in her behalf
Then say it, Margaretta
Maria makes me laugh
Refrain:
How do you solve a problem like Maria?
How do you catch a cloud and pin it down?
How do you find the word that means Maria?
A flibberti gibbet, a will o’ the wisp, a clown
Many a thing you know you’d like to tell her
Many a thing she ought to understand
But how do you make her stay
And listen to all you say?
How do you keep a wave upon the sand?
Oh, how do you solve a problem like Maria?
How do you hold a moonbeam in your hand?
When I’m with her I’m confused
Out of focus and bemused
And I never know exactly where I am
Unpredictable as weather
She’s as flightly as a feather
She’s a darling, she’s a demon, she’s a lamb
She’d out-pester any pest
Drive a hornet from his nest
She could throw a whirling dervish out of whirl
She is gentle, she is wild
She’s a riddle, she’s a child
She’s a headache, she’s an angel
She’s a girl
Refrain:
How do you solve a problem like Maria?
How do you catch a cloud and pin it down?
How do you find the word that means Maria?
A flibberti gibbet, a will o’ the wisp, a clown
Many a thing you know you’d like to tell her
Many a thing she ought to understand
But how do you make her stay
And listen to all you say?
How do you keep a wave upon the sand?
Oh, how do you solve a problem like Maria?
How do you hold a moonbeam in your hand?