On this day in 1935, the story is told that an Austrian priest named Fr. Franz Wasner came to the Salzburg home of a retired naval captain and his family to celebrate Easter Mass.
During the Mass, the officer's children sang, and the priest was overwhelmed by their musical talent. He eventually became the musical director and conductor of the von Trapp Family concert tours.
But that story isn't totally accurate. Following the Great Depression, the von Trapp family had lost their fortune, and were forced to take in boarders. One of the boarders was Fr. Wasner, who did become the family's musical director.
In 1938, Fr. Wasner fled from Austria to Italy with the von Trapps, and later toured with them throughout the United States and Europe.
After the musical family stopped performing in 1956, the priest accepted an invitation to teach and do missionary work in the Fiji Islands. He worked there until 1966, then briefly worked in the Holy Land before returning to Salzburg. He later became rector of the residence for German-speaking students studying in Rome.
Fr. Wasner died June 21, 1992, in Salzburg, Austria.
- Little Black Book, Diocese of Saginaw