Cécile McLorin Salvant performs Michel Lambert’s 1660 air de cour “D'un feu secret,” from her new album, Mélusine, accompanied by Dušan Balarin on theorbo (a type of French lute) and Sullivan Fortner on harpsichord, in the Unicorn Tapestries Room at The Met Cloisters in a new video out now as part of The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s performance series, MetLiveArts. This is the second of three performances Salvant filmed in the Met’s Unicorn Tapestry galleries in July of songs from the album, following the title track last week and ahead of “Dame Iseut” next week. You can watch “D'un feu secret” here:

Cécile McLorin Salvant’s album Mélusine is a mix of originals and interpretations of songs dating as far back as the 12th century, mostly sung in French along with Occitan, English, and Haitian Kreyòl. They tell the folk tale of Mélusine, a woman who turns into a half-snake each Saturday after a childhood curse by her mother.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art's concert program was founded in 1954, and has since expanded into a series that explores contemporary performance through the lens of the Museum’s exhibitions and gallery spaces. MetLiveArts invites artists, performers, curators, and thought leaders to collaborate with The Met, leading to the creation of commissions, world premieres, and site-specific dance, music, and theatrical experiences.