The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) was tearing down anti-American propaganda as part of unprecedented accommodations for the New York Philharmonic's visit, the ensemble's president said yesterday on the eve of its departure for the country.
Musicians preparing for the oldest American orchestra's trip to a country that remains technically at war with the US said they hoped to change DPRK people's views about their longtime foes.
Some worried, however, their performance tomorrow would fail to bring significant change.
The Philharmonic's president and executive director, Zarin Mehta, said the DPRK side had met all the group's requests for the trip, such as agreeing to stage the performance in a larger hall and to broadcast it live by radio and TV so the largest possible audience could listen.
Beyond the concert, Philharmonic musicians will also hold master classes for DPRK students and play chamber music with members of the North's State Symphony Orchestra.
"There's going to be major interaction with their musical community and that's what we wanted to do," Mehta said in Beijing, where the orchestra was playing before departing today for its 48-hour trip to the North. "We didn't want to go in and do a closed little concert and drive out."
Mehta, who visited the DPRK twice last year to organize the event, said he had been told the North was removing some of the anti-American propaganda he had seen earlier on streets of the capital, Pyongyang.
"They are so anxious for us to come, we understand all those posters are going away," he said.
Despite that claim, the DPRK's state media kept up its usual vitriol yesterday, with the main Rodong Sinmun newspaper condemning "US warmongers" for staging joint military exercises with the Republic of Korea that it said brought the peninsula "to the brink of a war."
Mehta said one of his first considerations in organizing the event was making sure the orchestra's diverse members, which include eight Koreans, would all be allowed to participate.
The DPRK side expressed surprise that the group included so many nationalities, he said, one of the discussions that Mehta noted illustrates how the visit will open the eyes of the nation's people.
"Our objective is to prove that we're not fiends and ogres and that we're there to show what American culture and friendship and civility is all about," he said.
The orchestra will perform both countries' national anthems at the start of the concert and both flags will be displayed together on the stage, Mehta said.
Source: China Daily/Agencies
It was not known whether DPRK leader Kim Jong-il would attend the concert, and Philharmonic spokesman Eric Latzky said the group had not directly extended an invitation to him.
The Swedish Embassy, which handles US interests in the North because the countries have no formal diplomatic relations, is working with the DPRK Foreign Ministry on the guest list for the event, he said.
Still, Latzky implied that reporters accompanying the Philharmonic should be ready for the unexpected, saying the orchestra staff would let them know about any "surprise guests" to appear at the concert.
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