The New York Philharmonic will arrive in North Korea this Monday, as reported in the Los Angeles Times, and perform the following day for an elite crowd that might include the country’s dictator, Kim Jong Il. The performance, which will be broadcast on state television, has been steeped in controversy.

Supporters argue the performance will be a form of soft diplomacy by giving North Koreans an alternative view of the United States, which the North Korean government usually refers to as “imperialist warmongers.” Opponents say the orchestra will be serenading a dictator accused of subjecting 200,000 political prisoners to forced labor and outlawing any form of criticism or free media.

To which the Philharmonic music director responded by saying the United States, with its own military prison in Guantanamo that operates outside international law, is in no place to criticize North Korea. “People who live in glass houses shouldn’t throw bricks, should they? Is our standing as a country — the United States — is our reputation all that clean when it comes to prisoners and the way they are treated?” said Lorian Maazel.

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