Dream Theater drummer Mike Mangini recently sat down with Music Radar for a career-spanning interview, which includes talk of replacing Mike Portnoy behind the Dream Theater kit in 2010. Following is an excerpt from the interview.

Q: When was the opportunity of auditioning for Dream Theater first put to you?

Mangini: “It was first put to me when I saw that Mike quit. I got contacted by their management asking if I was interested in auditioning. I said yes and had two of the three busiest weeks of my life, it was awful timing. I had my first week of the year at Berklee and then I did eight clinics in nine days in South America. I was transcribing the music on the plane and I won the audition, go figure. I didn’t have a lot of time to think. I just had to go do the best I could.”

Q: Was there extra pressure given that you were replacing one of the founders of the band?

Mangini: “The whole stigma of replacing someone is nonsense. Someone left their job and I took the job. End of discussion. Of course, it can’t be that simple. The other thing is that I hurt my wrist and couldn’t move it for eight days so I showed up not really being able to play the material. I was afraid that I couldn’t do it. I had to go with the flow with what my sound was going to be. My experience with Vai helped me in showing up and playing what was needed to be played. It’s not easy to do that.”

Go to this location for the complete interview.

Mangini recently unveiled a collection of artwork, titled Symmetry Beyond Planck.  In this short video, Mangini counts down the seven drummers who have shaped his style. See Mangini's entire collection today at MikeManginiArt.com.

In the clip below, Mike discusses his hopes for those that collect his artwork:

One of the most requested pieces so far in the collection, "Event Horizon Escape", can be seen below.

In the video below, Mangini discusses how drummers can view his artwork:

Utilizing a variety of lit drumsticks and techniques, much like a painter would use brushes with paint, Mangini has crafted this art collection for canvas built from rhythm. The collection titled Symmetry Beyond Planck showcases his unique approach to the shapes found in his drumming techniques. In the clip below, Mangini discusses how shapes and symmetry are an important component within his playing as well as his artwork:

Check out a brief video trailer for Mangini's artwork collection:

To create the artwork, Mike Mangini collaborated with art team/publisher SceneFour. Based in Los Angeles, SceneFour is committed to the creation and release of collaborative artwork with music visionaries. The mediums of rhythm-on-canvas and guitar-on-canvas are the cornerstones of Scene Four’s creative history.