Philharmonic music director Lorin Maazel says the concert does not in any way legitimize the North Korean leader’s reclusive regime.

He noted he has also conducted concerts in Brezhnev’s Russia, Salazar’s Portugal and Franco’s Spain.

"I thought I was making music and stretching out a welcoming hand to the folks who might not have been believers of the regime under which they were living. I feel this way certainly about North Korea," he said.