Standing during the playing of the
Hallelujah Chorus is a tradition dating back to the 1780's and possibly before.
Legend has it that when the
Messiah was first performed in 1743
in
London,
King George II stood during the
performance of the
Hallelujah Chorus and out of
respect for the
king, the other
members of the
audience also stood. Whether or not this actually
took place is not known with the first account of the practice and
its
origin not being recorded until nearly forty years later in 1780. No matter the
origin of the practice, standing during the
Hallelujah Chorus is still a tradition in many English speaking
churches.
My first introduction to the practice was about twelve years ago
during the Advent season. During our bible study hour prior to
the worship service, I was informed by one of the ladies in the
class I was attending that the Hallelujah Chorus was going to
be sung during the worship service that morning. I was then told
of the tradition of standing during the singing of the piece and
I made mental note of practice, though as I remember the response
to my question regarding the reason for the tradition was in the
neighborhood of "Because."
I will never forget that first time hearing the Hallelujah Chorus,
for as the opening strains of Handel's work sounded across the
sanctuary, the lady in question sprang to her feet as if stuck with
a tack. She stood with an air of self-righteous smugness on her
face, all the while radiating disapproval to those around her who
were not as quick to their feet. I remember thinking at the time
that tradition was a poor reason to stand during this piece if that
was the result.
But after listening to the work Handel produced, I have come to
realize that the truest reason to stand during the singing of the
Hallelujah Chorus is to honor the God about whom the piece is
sung. I stood the first time for tradition; everytime since then
has been out of respect.