Drummer / Percussionist Birthday Calendar

Mike Mangini, born April 18, 1963 in Newton, Massachusetts, is an American drummer, best known as a session musician and his work with Annihilator, Extreme, James LaBrie, Steve Vai, and more recently the progressive metal band, Dream Theater.

From 2002 to 2005, Mangini was held the title as The World's Fastest Drummer (WFD) while setting five world records.

As an educator, Mangini has lectured at the Berklee College of Music in Boston. He has written two books titled Rhythm Knowledge about his drumming techniques; a practice method for deconstructing and simplifying complex polyrhythms and time signatures.

Mangini appeared on the Discovery Channel show Time Warp, displaying his drum skills for high speed cameras. In 2010, Mangini joined Dream Theater, winning the audition after the departure of founding drummer, Mike Portnoy.