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Sir Edward Elgar left us his 4 Pomp and Circumstance Marches ...

Is it just a Brit thing to stand with the playing of the patriotic “Land of Hope and Glory”?

Land of Hope and Glory, Mother of the Free,
How shall we extol thee, who are born of thee?
Wider still, and wider, shall thy bounds be set;
God, who made thee mighty, make thee mightier yet!

Truth and Right and Freedom, each a holy gem,
Stars of solemn brightness, weave thy diadem.

Tho' thy way be darkened, still in splendour drest,
As the star that trembles o'er the liquid West.

Throned amid the billows, throned inviolate,
Thou hast reigned victorious, thou has smiled at fate.

Land of Hope and Glory, fortress of the Free,
How may we extol thee, praise thee, honour thee?

Hark, a mighty nation maketh glad reply;
Lo, our lips are thankful, lo, our hearts are high!

Hearts in hope uplifted, loyal lips that sing;
Strong in faith and freedom, we have crowned our King!

No, We (the Royal 'we' ) would love it if everyone around the world stood for it. As they do in the 'Last Night of the Proms' in the Royal Albert Hall, London every summer, where all the different nationalities in the audience wave their own flags but still sing Elgar in English. Reminds 'Us' of the glorious time when Britain ruled the world....

BTW, We also stand for 'Jerusalem', even though according to my atlas, Jerusalem is nowhere near England......

Thanks for the response bennevis ... in my student days I was lucky enough to attend an Albert Hall prom and experience the Brit bonding with the singing of "Land of Hope and Glory" ... one of the special memories of my London 4 years.

My question was really pointed at the Yanks (both sides of the Maison Dixon line) ... wondering if Sir Edward Elgar's marches found favour in the USA.

I would guess a huge number of Americans stood for this one, although the first couple of minutes is usually lopped off.

Not only that but marched to it. Is it not the graduation march in the US?

Gotta love the trio. As Elgar said when he wrote it: I got a tune which will knock 'em flat!

Yes, but we Americans are much too lazy to actually march. Even walking in time is doubtful for most.