Viral Toulouse airport pianist-singer duo record album

The story began in February, when pianist Valérie Marie began playing a piano that had been set up for members of the public to play on at Toulouse-Blagnac airport.

A man who she did not know, Grégory Benchenafi, then began singing along, and asked her to play the famous Cohen song.

The entire show was captured on video by someone in the gathering crowd, and was later posted on Ms Marie’s Facebook page, where it has now been watched over three million times and shared 57,000 times.

Writing on her page, Ms Marie called the experience full of “immense emotion”, after a “lyrical singer” had asked her to play Hallelujah. It had been “magical”, she said.

Now, the duo has announced the release of their new professional-quality mini-album, Une rencontre, which went on sale on Apple entertainment stores Apple Music and iTunes on Friday (March 2).

As well as a new recording of the Cohen track, the record also features a cover apiece of Every Breath You Take by The Police, and L’Envie, by the late Johnny Hallyday.