Former Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra conductor Chung Myung-whun is tentatively slated to lead the SPO in the orchestra’s performance marking the opening of the Lotte Concert Hall.

The concerts, scheduled for Aug. 18 and 19, would be the first time Chung is leading the orchestra since resigning last December amid a whirlwind of controversy.

“Having former conductor Chung conduct the Lotte Concert Hall’s upcoming opening concerts has actually been in the making for the past three years,” an SPO spokesperson told The Korea Herald on Monday. “It’s been expressed by all parties involved that it is important to have Chung take part in the opening ceremonies.”

The 2,036-seat Lotte Concert Hall, located inside the Lotte World Mall in Songpa-gu, Seoul, will mark the city’s first classical music concert hall to open in 28 years since the Seoul Arts Center was established in 1988. 

“It stands to be a very important concert hall in Korea and it means so much to Chung to stand together once again with the orchestra, because he is our country’s most representative maestro and we are very pleased to take part in this,” the spokesperson added.

Following the end of his 10 years as SPO music director, legal battles continue to plague the orchestra which is partly funded by the Seoul Metropolitan Government. Controversies first erupted at the end of 2014, when 17 members of the orchestra staff came forward and accused former SPO CEO Park Hyun-jung of sexual and verbal abuses, which eventually led to Park’s resignation.

However, following a months-long police investigation, in which police raided the SPO office on three separate occasions and questioned 33 SPO members, the police announced in March that the charges against Park are believed to be false.

The investigation went on to determine that the lies were concocted by 10 SPO members. It also pointed to maestro Chung’s wife, surnamed Koo, as the mastermind behind spreading the fabricated rumors in an effort to oust the CEO. 

The police have handed over its cases to the Prosecutors’ Office, with the suggestion of indicting 10 SPO members for their alleged role in spreading false rumors about their former CEO.

Last month, Park filed a suit with the Seoul Central District Court, demanding 600 million won ($520,000) in compensation from Chung. Park claims that the maestro made it appear in a past media interview that the allegations of abuse were known facts, further publicly defaming her character.

The former CEO also filed suits against three Seoul Metropolitan Government officials and two SPO members, seeking an additional 500 million won for their alleged role in the debacle.

Despite his ongoing legal controversies at home, Chung continues with his conducting engagements overseas. Earlier this month he led the La Scala Theater orchestra in its opera production of “Madame Butterfly” in Milan, Italy.

The maestro and his wife are rumored to be remaining overseas for the time being.

By Julie Jackson (juliejackson@heraldcorp.com)