it is one of the world's best loved musicals   the true story of a novice nun who falls in love with a widower and his seven children from julie andrews waltzing through the alps to seven children behaving perfectly,  the sound of music might look like it portrays the family everyone wants but andrews' real life counterpart   maria kutschera   was far from the idealized mother the popular film portrays in fact she was a difficult austrian woman plagued by insecurities scroll down for video  maria kutschera (centre) was far from the idealized mother the sound of music portrays, her son has revealed in a new book  whereas julie andrews (above) waltzed carelessly through the alps in the 1965 film, maria was described by her son johannes as 'incredibly strong' with 'literally an indomitable will' her son johannes has now revealed all in a new book written by tom santopietro he said: 'she was  incredibly strong with a formidable will, literally an indomitable will 'and sometimes running into that will was not so pleasant' the 75 year old added that his mother was very complex and admitted that she was unhappy as a child maria was born in 1905 while travelling from her parents' village in tyrol to a hospital in vienna, austria, on a train by the time she was ten both of her parents had died and she was sent to live with a violent uncle maria escaped from him and in 1926 she was a schoolteacher at the nonnberg abbey, in salzburg, intending to become a nun but while there she was asked to take a job as a governess at the home of a widowed man, who was left with seven children after his first wife agatha died of scarlet fever that man was georg von trapp they would quickly become married and have three more children georg von trapp was previously the commander of austrian submarine u5 he is pictured with his fiancée agathe whitehead  the von trapp family are pictured in 1939 top row: werner and rupert; second row: dr franz wasner, johanna, martina, maria and georg, johannes, hedwig, maria; bottom: agathe, rosmarie and eleonore  the family, including andrews (centre), perform a song in the film rosmarie, one of maria and georg's children who does not feature in the film, said: 'we never went running in a field and singing songs like that' it was not long before maria founded a family choir although the children sang together before she joined them, they remember her particularly pushing  public performances   especially after georg lost his fortune rosmarie, one of maria and georg's children, often found her mother particularly difficult she said it got worse after her father died in 1947 'i was not happy on stage i was made to do it,' boudicca fox leonard of the sunday people reported her saying the now 87 year old said: 'we never went running in a field and singing songs like that we had a hard life it was a struggle' in real life, after fleeing the country in 1938 the von trapp's came to rely on their musical performances for money  she also recounts maria sending her for shock therapy after she had a breakdown and said she locked step daughter johanna in a room for announcing she was getting married after fleeing the country  in 1938, the family   known as the trapp family singers in the us   came to rely on the performances for money the popular film was made after broadway found a book  detailing the family's adventurers maria later sold the rights  to hollywood for £3,000 but director robert wise rebuffed her attempts to act as an adviser he admitted in an interview: 'she was bossy, i didn't like that about her' even director robert wise rebuffed maria's attempts to act as an adviser he admitted in an interview: 'she was bossy, i didn't like that about her' only three children, none of which feature in the film, survive the last surviving von trapp singer died in early 2014 four of the couple's great grandchildren are still attempting to keep the tradition alive sofi, melanie, amanda, and their younger brother august have revived the family's musical heritage and are singing together they can remember little of their great grandmother sofi said: 'we know she was a little impulsive, but without her the family would never have survived as a single group 'the captain would have been taken off to war if it wasn't for the singing' the sound of music story, by tom santopietro, is out now
daughter rosmarie maria 1927 johannes georg von trapp maria von trapp 75 year old
maria von trapp was criticised by son johannes in a new book  75 year old revealed his mother was very complex with lots of insecurities  daughter rosmarie added that she was forced to go on stage  maria married georg von trapp in 1927 after becoming his governess 