Revered drummer and Grammy winner, Mike Mangini is thrilled to announce a special Masterclass opportunity. After a decade-long hiatus from in-person sessions, Mike is capitalizing on a break in his schedule to return to his passion for education.
He is primarily known as the former drummer of the progressive metal band Dream Theater, with whom he played between 2010 and 2023. He has also played for bands and artists such as Annihilator, Extreme, James LaBrie, and Steve Vai.
Before joining Dream Theater, Mangini was a faculty member at Berklee College of Music. In 1987, Mangini scored one of his first high-profile opportunities, playing drums for Boston’s Rick Berlin Band. This would be his first collaboration with bassist Philip Bynoe. He also taught drums privately in Boston during this time.
In 1991, Mangini joined the thrash metal band Annihilator, playing drums on several tracks for the band’s album Set the World on Fire. He went on to tour with the band in support of this album until 1994.
That year, he joined Boston hard rock band Extreme, replacing original drummer Paul Geary. Mangini played on three songs on Extreme’s 1995 album Waiting for the Punchline and appeared with the band on the Late Show with David Letterman. Between 2002 and 2005, he set five World’s Fastest Drummer records.
In 2005, Mike Mangini accepted a full-time teaching position at the Berklee College of Music in the Percussion Department. He resigned in 2010 after joining Dream Theater.
Mangini appeared on the Discovery Channel show Time Warp, displaying his remarkable drum skills for high-speed cameras. On October 25, 2023, Dream Theater shocked everyone by announcing the departure of Mangini, but at the same time, the previous founding drummer Mike Portnoy also joined them back. Mike Mangini had excitedly shared about the Masterclass on his Instagram profile.
In this particular Masterclass, students are invited to share what is their present problem and tackle it with the help of the questions. But no worries, Mike, grounded in his extensive practice, will give recommendations, is absolutely committed to your specific objectives, and will offer a way out regarding the realization of musical affections.
This amazing opportunity will help the students gain outstanding skills in a few weeks and thereby cut down on the time they would have otherwise spent on their musical journey.