A drum circle gets its name, first and foremost, from the shape the participants sit in. But when Mark Farley holds his weekly drum circle at San Jose’s Morgan Autism Center the name has a much deeper meaning.
During the weekly circles he leads every Friday, Farley has learned that whatever magic he creates when his hands hit his drums always circles right back to him.
“I can’t tell you how amazing it is,” Farley said. “I am so blessed to be a part of that.”
Farley says music has always been a part of his life. It was, he confesses, one of the ways he mentally escaped to cope with a trouble, and at times abusive, upbringing in Compton.
“The fantasy world is what allowed me to do that,” Farley said. “I could spend hours fantasizing about something, creating something else.”
What Farley ended up creating was quite a life. After moving to the Bay Area to attend San Jose State, Farley raised two sons and lead a successful career in Silicon Valley.
It was a career, Farley says, that eventually left him burned out. Picking up the drums at the suggestion of a friend a few years ago, though, brought him a renewed energy.
“This is one of those things that will allow some magic to happen in the brain of a person, whether they’re just dealing with autism or just like me, a guy burnt out from Silicon Valley,” Farley said.
So a few months ago, Farley offered to bring his drums to Morgan and share his passion with the students there. The first few weeks he showed up, only a handful of students were brave enough to join his circle. Each following week, though, more and more students have been participating.
“I’m just overwhelmed by some of hte stuff that I see these kids do,” Farley said.
