For Families In Crisis, A Songwriter Offers Humor And Empathy

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Alastair Moock's new album, Singing Our Way Through: Songs for the World's Bravest Kids, is based on experiences with his daughter Clio, who is in remission from leukemia. Mara Brod/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Mara Brod/Courtesy of the artist

Alastair Moock's new album, Singing Our Way Through: Songs for the World's Bravest Kids, is based on experiences with his daughter Clio, who is in remission from leukemia.

Mara Brod/Courtesy of the artist

I don't know what I'd do if my child suffered a life-threatening illness, but I'm guessing my response would involve music. That was a big part of how Boston musician Alastair Moock reacted when one of his twin 5-year-old daughters, Clio, was diagnosed with leukemia last summer. He sang traditional songs and made up new ones with Clio, which the two of them sang together in her hospital room.

Moock's new album, Singing Our Way Through: Songs for the World's Bravest Kids, is based on his family's experiences with Clio and her fellow patients. Kids fighting illness and their families are its primary audience, but its message of clear-eyed hope and comfort isn't just for kids.

You don't need to have a child (or be one) to appreciate "Home When I Hold You," Moock's duet with fellow Boston singer Aoife O'Donovan. Moock crowd-funded the album's production so he could give it away to patients and kids' cancer units. With Clio now in remission as she starts her second year of chemotherapy, he's also free to take these songs on tour. The songs provide a combination of empathy and humor, offering strength to any families facing an uncertain future.