Renowned South Korean conductor Chung Myung-whun arrived in North Korea Tuesday for a rehearsal of a planned joint performance in Paris by North Korean and French orchestras, the North’s media reported.

A brief report by the North’s Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) confirmed the arrival of Chung and his party in the country’s capital of Pyongyang, but gave no other details, including the purpose and length of the trip.

According to South Korea’s Unification Ministry, Chung, the director of the Seoul metropolitan orchestra, planned to travel to Pyongyang with his wife and his assistant on Tuesday for a three-day trip for the rehearsal.

North Korea’s Unhasu Orchestra and the Radio France Philharmonic Orchestra that Chung also leads are scheduled to play Brahms’ Symphony No. 1 for the joint performance at the Salle Pleyel theater in Paris on March 14. 

(Yonhap News)