Name	A. R. Rahman அ. ர. ரஹ்மான்
Background	non_performing_personnel
Birth name	A. S. Dileep Kumar
Alias	A. R. Rahman, ARR, AR
Born	January 06, 1966 Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
Genre	Film score, theatre, world music
Occupation	Composer, record producer, music director, singer, instrumentalist, arranger, programmer
Years active	1985–present
Label	K M Musiq
Url	arrahman.com

Allah Rakha Rahman (; born 6 January 1966 as A. S. Dileep Kumar) is an Indian film composer, record producer, musician and singer. His film scoring career began in the early 1990s. He has won fourteen Filmfare Awards, eleven Filmfare Awards South, four National Film Awards, two Academy Awards, two Grammy Awards, a BAFTA Award and a Golden Globe.

Rahman obtained a degree in western classical music from the Trinity College of Music in London, and set up his own in-house studio called Panchathan Record Inn at Chennai, arguably one of Asia’s most sophisticated and high-tech studios. Later by working in India's various film industries, international cinema and theatre, by 2004, Rahman, in a career spanning nearly two decades, had sold more than 150 million records of his film scores and soundtracks worldwide, and sold over 200 million cassettes, making him one of the world's all-time top selling recording artists. He was described as "India's most prominent movie songwriter" by Time magazine in 2005.

His works are notable for integrating eastern classical music with electronic music sounds, world music genres, new technology and traditional orchestral arrangements. Time magazine has referred to him as the "Mozart of Madras" and several Tamil commentators have coined him the nickname Isai Puyal (; ). In 2009, Time magazine placed Rahman in its list of World's Most Influential People.

Early life

A. R. Rahman was born in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India to a musically affluent Mudaliar Tamil family. His father R. K. Shekhar, was a Chennai based composer and conductor for Malayalam films. Rahman lost his father at the age of 9 and his family rented out his father's musical equipment as a source of income. He was raised by his mother Kareema (previously called Kashturi). During these formative years, Rahman served as a keyboard player and an arranger in bands such as "Roots", with childhood friend and percussionist Sivamani, John Anthony, Suresh Peters, JoJo and Raja. Rahman is the founder of the Chennai-based rock group, "Nemesis Avenue". He played the keyboard and piano, the synthesizer, the harmonium and the guitar. His curiosity in the synthesizer, in particular increased because, he says, it was the "ideal combination of music and technology". He began early training in music under Master Dhanraj. At the age of 11, he joined and worked, as a keyboardist for nearly a decade, in the troupe of Ilaiyaraaja,

He was introduced to Qadiri Islam when his father was dying and his younger sister fell severely sick. He describes the process as taking five years; he along with other members of his family converted to Islam in 1989 when he was 23 years old. He changed his name to Rahman.

Film scoring and soundtracks

His notable film career began in 1992, when he began the Panchathan Record Inn, a music recording and mixing studio attached to the backyard of his house. Over time it would become the most advanced recording studio in India. He initially composed scores for documentaries, jingles for advertisements and Indian Television channels and other projects. In 1992, he was approached by film director Mani Ratnam to compose the score and soundtrack for Ratnam's Tamil film Roja.

Roja's score met with high sales and acclaim in both its original and dubbed versions, bringing about a marked change in film music at the time. Rahman followed this with successful scores for Tamil–language films of the Chennai film industry including Ratnam's politically charged Bombay, the urbanite Kadhalan, Bharathiraaja's Karuththamma, the saxophonic Duet, Indira, and the romantic comedies Mr. Romeo and Love Birds, which gained him considerable notice. His fanbase in Japan increased with Muthu 's success there. His soundtracks gained him recognition in the Tamil Nadu film industry and around the world for his stylistic versatility incorporating Western classical, Carnatic and Tamil traditional/folk music traditions, jazz, reggae and rock music. The Bombay Theme—from Ratnam's Bombay—would later reappear in Deepa Mehta's Fire and various compilations and media. Rangeela, directed by Ram Gopal Varma, marked Rahman's debut for Hindi-language films made in the Mumbai film industry. Many successful scores for films including Dil Se and the percussive Taal followed. Sufi mysticism would inspire the track "Chaiyya Chaiyya" from the former, as well as the composition "" from his score for the film , for which he created large orchestral and choral arrangements. Musical cues in scores for Sangamam and Iruvar employed Carnatic vocals and instruments such as the veena with leads of rock guitar and jazz. In the 2000s Rahman created hit scores for Rajiv Menon's Kandukondain Kandukondain, Alaipayuthey, Ashutosh Gowariker's Swades and Rang De Basanti. He composed songs with Hindustani motifs for Water (2005).

Rahman has worked with Indian poets and lyricists such as Javed Akhtar, Gulzar, Vairamuthu and Vaali. He has consistently produced commercially successful soundtracks when collaborating with particular film directors such as Mani Ratnam who he has worked with since Roja, and the director S. Shankar in the films Gentleman, Kadhalan, Indian, Jeans, Mudhalvan, , Boys, and Enthiran.

In 2005, Rahman extended his Panchathan Record Inn studio by establishing AM Studios in Kodambakkam, Chennai, thereby creating the most cutting-edge studio in Asia. In 2006, Rahman launched his own music label, KM Music. Its first release was his score to the film Sillunu Oru Kaadhal. Rahman scored the Mandarin language picture Warriors of Heaven and Earth in 2003 after researching and utilizing Chinese and Japanese classical music, and co-scored the Shekhar Kapoor project in 2007. His compositions have been sampled for other scores within India, and appeared in such films as Inside Man, Lord of War, Divine Intervention and The Accidental Husband. In 2008, Rahman scored his first Hollywood picture, the comedy Couples Retreat released the next year. Rahman scored the film Slumdog Millionaire in 2008, for which he won a Golden Globe and two Academy Awards, becoming the first Indian citizen to do so. In the United States, the soundtrack topped the Dance/Electronic Albums chart and reached #4 on the Billboard 200 chart. The song "Jai Ho" reached #2 on the Eurochart Hot 100 Singles and #15 on the US Billboard Hot 100.

Other works

Rahman has been involved in several projects aside from film. Vande Mataram, an album of his original compositions released on India's 50th anniversary of independence in 1997, enjoyed great commercial success. He followed it up with an album for the Bharat Bala–directed video Jana Gana Mana, a conglomeration of performances by many leading exponents and artists of Indian classical music. Rahman has written jingles for ads and composed several orchestrations for athletic events, television and internet media publications, documentaries and short films.

In 1999, Rahman partnered with choreographers Shobhana and Prabhu Deva Sundaram and a Tamil cinema dancing troupe to perform with Michael Jackson in Munich, Germany at his "Michael Jackson and Friends" concert. In 2002, he composed the music for his maiden stage production, Bombay Dreams, commissioned by musical theatre composer Andrew Lloyd Webber. Finnish folk music band Värttinä collaborated with Rahman to write the music for The Lord of the Rings theatre production and in 2004, Rahman composed the piece "Raga's Dance" for Vanessa-Mae's album Choreography. He has been collaborating with Karen David for her upcoming studio album. A two-disc soundtrack, Introducing A. R. Rahman (2006) featuring 25 of his pieces from Tamil film scores was released in May 2006, and his non-film album, Connections was released on 12 December 2008. Rahman also performed at the White House State dinner arranged by U.S. President Barack Obama during the official visit of Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on 24 November 2009. Rahman is one of over 70 artists who performed on "", a charity single to raise emergency relief funds in the wake of the 2010 Haiti earthquake. In 2010, Rahman composed "Jay Jay Garvi Gujarat" in honor of the 50th anniversary of the formation of Gujarat State, "Semmozhiyaana Thamizh Mozhiyaam" as part of World Classical Tamil Conference 2010, and the official theme song of the 2010 Commonwealth Games, "Jiyo Utho Bado Jeeto". Rahman organised his first world tour, named , in 2010. The ongoing tour was kicked off on June 11 at the Nassau Coliseum in New York and will span 16 major cities worldwide.

Rahman, who had composed the highly successful signature tune for telecom brand Airtel, released a new version of the song on 18 November 2010. He also released the theme song for Radio Desi Beats, of which he is a brand ambasaddor of, a couple of days later. Automobile brand Toyota roped Rahman in to endorse their India specific car Etios in 2010. He scored the ad and was featured in it. Rahman also recorded a song for it, called "Pehli Baar", recorded by Chinmayi, Javed Ali and Madhushree.

Music style and impact

Skilled in Carnatic music, Western classical, Hindustani music and the Qawwali style of Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Rahman has been noted to write film songs that amalgamate elements of these music systems and other genres, layering instruments from differing music idioms in an improvisatory manner.

His first soundtrack for Roja was listed in TIME's "10 Best Soundtracks" of all time in 2005. Film critic Richard Corliss felt the "astonishing debut work parades Rahman's gift for alchemizing outside influences until they are totally Tamil, totally Rahman." Rahman's initial global reach is attributed to the South Asian diaspora. Described as one of the most innovative composers to ever work in the industry, his unique style and immense success transformed film music in the 1990s prompting several film producers to take film music more seriously. The music producer Ron Fair considers Rahman to be "one of the world's great living composers in any medium".

The director Baz Luhrmann notes }}

Awards

Rahman was the 1995 recipient of the Mauritius National Award and the Malaysian Award for contributions to music. He was nominated for a Laurence Olivier Award for his first West-End production. A four-time National Film Award winner and conferred the Padma Shri from the Government of India, Rahman has also received six Tamil Nadu State Film Awards, fourteen Filmfare Awards and eleven Filmfare Awards South for his music and scores. In 2006, he received an honorary award from Stanford University for contributions to global music. In 2009, for his score of Slumdog Millionaire, Rahman won the Critics' Choice Award, the Golden Globe Award for Best Original Score, the BAFTA Award for Best Film Music, and two Academy Awards for Best Original Music Score and Best Original Song at the 2009 Oscars. Rahman has received honorary doctorates from Middlesex University and Aligarh Muslim University. Later the year Rahman was conferred the honorary doctorate from Anna University in Chennai. He has also won two Grammy Awards, for Best Compilation Soundtrack Album and Best Song Written for a Visual Media. Rahman was awarded the Padma Bhushan, India's third highest civilian honor, in 2010. Rahman has been nominated for the 2011 Golden Globe Award for Best Original Score for the film 127 Hours. He is an Honorary Fellow of the Trinity College of Music in London.

Personal life

He is married to Saira Banu and has three children, Khatija, Rahima, and Ameen. Rahman made his son Ameen sing the track "NaNa" from Couples Retreat and his daughter Khatija the track "Pudhiya Manidha" from Enthiran. Rahman is the uncle of composer G. V. Prakash Kumar, who is the son of Rahman's elder sister, A. R. Reihana. She debuted in film singing on the track "Vidai Kodu Engal Naadae" from Kannathil Muthamittal. He is the brother-in-law of Malayalam film actor Rahman.

He had become an atheist as a result of childhood struggles, and eventually in 1989 converted to Islam, the religion of his mother's family. In an interview with Time magazine, he said that he embraced Islam through Sufism. He is very devoted to his mother. During the 81st Academy Awards ceremony, he paid her a tribute saying: "There is a Hindi dialogue 'mere pass ma hai' which means even if I have got nothing I have my mother here."

Despite being a former atheist, Rahman began his own catchphrase, "Ella pughazhum iraivanukke", a sentence in Tamil which literally means "All praises dedicated to God". The phrase was further popularized after Rahman uttered it during his speech at the 81st Academy Awards ceremony.

Social service

Rahman is involved in various charitable causes. In 2004, he was appointed as the Global Ambassador of the Stop TB Partnership, a project by WHO. In 2008, Rahman opened his KM Music Conservatory partnered with Audio Media Education facility to tutor and train aspiring musicians in vocals, instruments, music technology and sound design. The conservatory – with preeminent musicians on its panel and a newly founded symphony orchestra – is located near his studio in Kodambakkam, Chennai, offering courses at Beginners, Foundation and Diploma level. Several of Rahman's proteges from the studio have gone onto score music for feature films. Rahman composed the theme music for a short film for The Banyan in 2006, in aid of destitute women in Chennai. In 2008, Rahman, along with percussionist Sivamani created a song titled Jiya Se Jiya, inspired by the Free Hugs Campaign and promoted it through a video shot in various cities in India.

Filmography

Notes

References

External links

A. R. Rahman official site

A. R. Rahman at WN

Category:1966 births Category:Living people Category:A. R. Rahman Category:Indian musicians Category:Indian Muslims Category:Indian film score composers Category:20th-century classical composers Category:21st-century classical composers Category:Bollywood playback singers Category:Kollywood playback singers Category:Indian film singers Category:Indian male singers Category:Recipients of the Padma Bhushan Category:Recipients of the Padma Shri Category:Best Original Music Score Academy Award winners Category:Filmfare Awards winners Category:National Film Award winners Category:Tamil musicians Category:Tamil film score composers Category:Telugu film score composers Category:Malayalam Music directors Category:People from Chennai Category:Converts to Islam Category:Academy Award winners Category:Grammy Award winners Category:Trinity College of Music alumni Category:Indian composers

Background	solo_singer
Birth name	Matthew William Sorum
Born	November 19, 1960in present-day Mission Viejo, California, U.S.
Instrument	Drums, Percussion, Guitar, Vocals
Genre	Hard rock, heavy metal, blues rock, alternative rock
Occupation	Musician, Drummer, Songwriter
Years active	1975–present
Label	Geffen RecordsRCA
Associated acts	Guns N' RosesVelvet RevolverHawkJohnny CrashThe CultCamp FreddyGilby ClarkeCircus DiabloSlash's SnakepitNeurotic OutsidersY Kant Tori ReadMotörheadCherie Currie
Url	Official website

Matthew William Sorum (born November 19, 1960, in what is now Mission Viejo, California) is an American hard rock drummer and percussionist. Sorum is most famous for his 7-year stint in Guns N' Roses (1990–1997) and supergroup Velvet Revolver (2002–present), which comprises former Guns N' Roses members Duff McKagan (bass) and Slash (lead guitar).

Biography

Early career (1960-1989)

Matt Sorum was born Matthew William Sorum (Norwegian spelling Sørum), on November 19, 1960, in the present-day city of Mission Viejo, California. His parents were of English and Norwegian descent. In his first couple of years in high school, Sorum was part of the Mission Viejo Marching Bands drum section. Sorum started out in Mission Viejo as a local hot musician in 1975. Wearing trademark "Union Flag" shorts and nothing else, he used to pound a huge acrylic drumset and overpower his first band "Prophecy", where he and lead singer / guitarist, Jeff Harris (guitarist for the J. Harris Band and later guitarist for funk band Slapbak), stood out and the rest of the band just disappeared. A local songwriter, Stephen Douglas, pulled him from the band and joined him with other talented musicians in the area to form "Chateau", a wall-of-sound band with grandiose themes and sounds in their songs. Chateau played the Hollywood circuit, appearing at Gazzarri's and almost getting into a fight with the original members of the band Ratt, which at the time was known as "Mickey Ratt".

Sorum's work with Chateau produced a four song set that was covered by local radio stations for a short time, but the music scene changed from grandiose rock to punk and alternative new wave music. Sorum left and went to Hollywood to play with a series of bands, including "Population Five", with the bassist Prescott Niles from The Knack, . He then left on a tour around the country with a blues guitarist, playing nightclubs and bars.

In 1988, he was recruited to play on the debut album of Y Kant Tori Read, a band fronted by a then unknown Tori Amos. In the wake of that project, he joined The Cult as their live drummer for the 1989 tour in support of Sonic Temple.

Guns N' Roses (1990-1997)

In 1989 Slash saw Sorum live with The Cult on their Sonic Temple tour and, shortly after, Sorum joined Guns N' Roses as Steven Adler's replacement.

Sorum with Guns N' Roses can be heard on Use Your Illusion I, Use Your Illusion II (excluding the track "Civil War"), "The Spaghetti Incident?", the 1994 cover of the Rolling Stones track "Sympathy for the Devil" and the majority of . Sorum featured fully on the lengthy Use Your Illusion Tour, drumming on all of the 192 shows, 8 legs and to over 7 million fans.

In 1995 with Slash and Gilby Clarke he formed Slash's Snakepit and drummed on their debut album It's Five O'Clock Somewhere. Sorum also lent his drumming skills in the theme song for the 1995 20th Century Fox film, . In the same year Matt formed the supergroup Neurotic Outsiders, which featured fellow bandmate Duff McKagan where they released their only album, self titled Neurotic Outsiders. John Taylor (Duran Duran) and Steve Jones (Sex Pistols) also participated on this album, and toured. Early performances featured guest spots by Simon Le Bon (Duran Duran), Slash, and Billy Idol.

In 1997 he was fired from Guns N' Roses by Axl Rose after defending departed lead guitarist Slash in an argument with Rose and Paul Tobias. In 1998, he released his first and only drum instructional video (Drum Licks and Tricks from the Rock n Roll Jungle) demonstrating his techniques. In 2001 Matt joined The Cult once again and featured on their album, Beyond Good And Evil, which he spent most of 2001 touring in support of the album.

In April 2006, nine years after leaving Guns N' Roses, Sorum re-established his friendship with the band's frontman Axl Rose.

Velvet Revolver (2002-present)

In 1999, Sorum reunited with Slash and bassist Duff McKagan to promote a concert for the independent film Soundman (written and directed by Steven Ho) at the Slamdance Film Festival. Sorum had composed the film with Lanny Cordola and Michael Stearns. Realizing that they still had chemistry together, they formed a new band called Velvet Revolver with former STP frontman, Scott Weiland and rhythm guitarist Dave Kushner. After the 2004 release of their debut album Contraband, they embarked on a worldwide tour that continued through December 2005. In August 2005, Sorum broke his wrist in a boating accident, stalling the tour temporarily. While recovering from the wrist injury the drummer Brian Tichy and Mark Schulman filled in for him.

After taking some time off in 2006, Sorum and the rest of the band returned to the studio in December to record Libertad, Velvet Revolver's second album, released July 3, 2007. Sorum toured with the band, until singer Scott Weiland parted ways with Velvet Revolver on April 1, 2008.

He played drums on tour with Motörhead for 3 weeks in September 2009.

Other ventures

In addition to those projects Sorum released his first solo album entitled Hollywood Zen, in 2003. The album, available through his website, was a musical statement about his life, touring, relationships, etc. In the same year, Sorum also began playing with newly formed Camp Freddy. In 1994, Sorum was one of many guest drummers on the album, "Burning for Buddy: A Tribute to the Music of Buddy Rich". Playing with the Buddy Rich Big Band, Sorum was able to display his skill and finnesse as a jazz drummer.

In addition, Sorum has endorsed Zildjian cymbals for the past 18 years and has featured in numerous sweepstakes with Zildjian.

In 2006, Sorum began guest recording in his studio with a new project, called Circus Diablo. That year, he also launched a clothing line, SorumNoce.

On June 4, 2008, Sorum revealed Camp Freddy is working on an album.

Matt has also lent his talents to Submersible Music's DrumCore software.

Sorum was featured in episode 54 of the television program LA Ink originally airing on August 27, 2009. On the program Kat Von D. tattoos a portrait of his girlfriend Ace on his leg.

Matt filled in for Mikkey Dee as drummer on Motörhead's 2009 US tour. Dee took part in Kändisdjungeln, a Swedish version of I'm a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here!.

After performing together at the "Giving 2010" benefit event on May 3, 2010, Sorum formed the cover band "Carnival of Dogs" with Tracii Guns (L.A. Guns, formerly of Brides of Destruction), Franky Perez (Solo, Scars on Broadway, DKFXP) and Phil Soussan (formerly of Ozzy Osbourne, Billy Idol and Vince Neil).

Endorsements

Sorum has endorsed a number of drum companies over the last 20 years, with these being Yamaha Drums, Mapex, Drum Workshop and Ludwig. He also has used Zildjian cymbals over the last 20 years.

Sorum was one of the first drummers to endorse the Easton Ahead sticks in the early 90s during the Guns N' Roses Use Your Illusion Tour, sticks which are now used by many famous drummers, including Lars Ulrich of Metallica, and Tico Torres of Bon Jovi. Now, he uses his own Zildjian Matt Sorum Signature wood sticks.

Discography

With Hawk

Hawk (1986)

With Jeff Paris

Wired Up (1987)

With Y Kant Tori Read

Y Kant Tori Read (1988)

With Johnny Crash

Unfinished Business (2008)

With Guns N' Roses

Use Your Illusion I (1991)

Use Your Illusion II (1991)

"The Spaghetti Incident?" (1993)

(1999)

Greatest Hits (2004)

With Slash's Snakepit

It's Five O'Clock Somewhere (1995)

With Neurotic Outsiders

Neurotic Outsiders (1996)

With The Cult

Beyond Good And Evil (2001)

With Velvet Revolver

Contraband (2004)

Libertad (2007)

Melody and the Tyranny (2007)

With Atif Aslam

The Dreamer Awakes By Lanny Cordola (Summer 2011)

Solo

Hollywood Zen (2003)

Guest appearances

Duff McKagan - Believe In Me (1993)

Gilby Clarke - Pawnshop Guitars (1994)

Glenn Hughes - Feel (1995)

Sammy Hagar - Marching To Mars (1997) and Cosmic Universal Fashion (2008)

Glenn Hughes - The Way It Is (1999)

Buddy Rich Big Band - Beaulah Witch

References

External links

Category:1960 births Category:Living people Category:American heavy metal drummers Category:People from Long Beach, California Category:American musicians of English descent Category:American musicians of Norwegian descent Category:Musicians from California Category:Guns N' Roses members Category:Johnny Crash members Category:Slash's Snakepit members Category:The Cult members Category:Velvet Revolver members

Name	Joe Mauer
Width	250
Caption	Mauer batting for the Twins
Position	Catcher
Number	7
Bats	Left
Throws	Right
Birthdate	April 19, 1983
Birthplace	St. Paul, Minnesota
Debutdate	April 5
Debutyear	2004
Debutteam	Minnesota Twins
Team	Minnesota Twins
Statyear	2010 season
Stat1label	Batting average
Stat1value	.327
Stat2label	Home runs
Stat2value	81
Stat3label	Runs batted in
Stat3value	472
Stat4label	On-base percentage
Stat4value	.407
Stat5label	Slugging percentage
Stat5value	.481
Teams
Awards

Joseph Patrick Mauer (born April 19, 1983) is a Major League Baseball catcher for the Minnesota Twins. Mauer is regarded as one of the best defensive and offensive catchers in baseball. He is the only catcher in Major League history to win three batting titles. He has also won three Gold Glove awards, plus the 2009 AL MVP award.

High-school career

Mauer played football, basketball, and baseball for Saint Paul's Cretin-Derham Hall Raiders, the high school of Paul Molitor, a member of the Baseball Hall of Fame. In his senior year he became the only athlete ever to be selected as the USA Today High School Player of the Year in two sports (football in 2000 as a quarterback and baseball in 2001 as a catcher).

In December 2009, Sports Illustrated magazine included Mauer in its article on ten "signature" moments in U.S. high-school sports in the 2000–2009 decade, referring to his selection by the Minnesota Twins as the first pick in the 2001 amateur draft.

Baseball

Mauer attended the same high school as Baseball Hall of Famer and former Milwaukee Brewer Paul Molitor. Jim O'Neill, Mauer's baseball coach at Cretin-Derham Hall, said his former student "has been groomed for this job since he was a little boy. Mauer's dad, Jake, created a contraption for Joe he later named the 'Quickswing'. The device dropped balls down a tube from eye level and released them at waist level." Mauer had been asked to leave his T-ball league at the age of four, because he was hitting the ball too hard for the other players. "Another guy that came from Cretin-Derham Hall, Paul Molitor, was very similar, [and] had a good short swing," O'Neill said. "And they're both able to wait on the ball so long because they don't have the big swing. Like anything, you keep simple and keep it small or short, there's not a lot of holes in it and not a lot of room for errors."

A stand-out in baseball, Mauer struck out only once during his four-year high school career (by pitcher Paul Feiner), and hit .605 during his senior season. Years later, Mauer laughingly told an interviewer: "I can remember the time I did strike out. It was junior year, and it was in the state tournament. I came back to the bench and everybody thought something was wrong with me." Mauer caught for the Team USA Junior National team from 1998 to 2000 and hit .595 during his final year on the team. He was voted best hitter at the World Junior Baseball Championship in Canada in . In , Mauer was voted the United States District V Player of the year.

Basketball

Mauer averaged more than 20 points a game as a point guard for Cretin-Derham Hall. He finished his two-year career as a starter with 5,528 yards and 73 touchdowns,

Professional career

Mauer ultimately turned down a football scholarship from Florida State University to enter the Major League Baseball Draft.

Mauer was part of the United States' roster at the All-Star Futures Game at U.S. Cellular Field before being promoted to the Twins' roster in after his predecessor, A. J. Pierzynski, was traded to the San Francisco Giants, in the 2003 offseason.

Mauer went 2-for-3 in his Major League debut, hitting a single off Rafael Betancourt of the Cleveland Indians for his first major-league hit. A knee injury to his left medial meniscus on April 7, 2004, required surgery and sidelined Mauer for more than a month. After a rehabilitation stint with the Twins' AAA affiliate Rochester Red Wings, Mauer returned to the Twins' lineup in June. In July, pain and swelling in his knee forced an early end to Mauer's 2004 season.

Following his injury-shortened 2004, Mauer signed a contract for $5.7 million with the Twins on January 24, 2005. In 2005, Mauer returned to the Twins' lineup for his first full major league season and had 144 hits in 131 games, with 9 home runs and 55 RBI. He ended the year with an average of .294.

2006

In his breakout 2006 season, Mauer became the first catcher in major league history to lead the majors in batting average and the first American League catcher to win the batting title, finishing with an average of .347. Mauer's performance during the months of May and June garnered attention from the national media. He recorded a .528 batting average over the first ten days of June and hit .452 over the course of the month. He was also the first player since Mike Piazza in 1997 to reach base four or more times for five consecutive games. On June 12, Mauer was named the American League Player of the Week by Major League Baseball for his performance the week of June 4 - 11th, during which he hit .625 (15-for-24) with 5 doubles, 4 RBI and 2 stolen bases.

Mauer recorded his first five RBI game June 26, against the Los Angeles Dodgers. On July 2, Mauer was selected by the players to his first All-Star Game. Mauer appeared on the cover of the August 7, 2006 issue of Sports Illustrated.

Mauer finished the 2006 regular season with a .347 batting average, edging the New York Yankees' Derek Jeter and Robinson Canó to win the American League batting title and become the first-ever American League catcher to win the crown and the first catcher to claim the title since Ernie Lombardi in 1942 with the Boston Braves. His .347 average was the highest in the Major Leagues, a feat not achieved by the previous three catchers to win NL batting titles. He was the youngest player to win a batting title since Alex Rodriguez in 1996.

2007

On February 11, Mauer agreed to a four-year, $33 million contract with the Twins to avoid arbitration. The deal ensured that Mauer would remain in Minnesota long enough to play in the Twins' Target Field in 2010.

On July 21, Mauer hit his first career inside-the-park home run against Angels pitcher Scot Shields. It was his fifth home run of the season, and there were two players on base when he hit the homer. It was the first inside-the-park home run by a catcher since Kelly Stinnett did it for the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2005.

2008

In 2008, he became the first American League catcher to win the batting title twice when he led the AL with an average of .328; Mauer also won his first Gold Glove Award.

On July 6, Mauer was announced as the starting catcher for the American League in the 2008 Major League Baseball All-Star Game.

At the end of the 2008 season, Mauer won the AL batting title with a .328 batting average; it was his second in three years. Mauer underwent surgery for kidney obstruction on December 22.

Mauer won his first Gold Glove award in 2008, announced on November 6, He finished fourth in the balloting for American League Most Valuable Player, behind Dustin Pedroia, Justin Morneau, and Kevin Youkilis.

2009

In 2009, he became the first catcher to lead the league in batting average, on base percentage, and slugging percentage in a single year, and the first player to lead the American League in all three since George Brett did so in 1980. Mauer's .365 average, which is the all-time highest mark among catchers in MLB history, led Major League Baseball. Mauer also won his second consecutive Gold Glove in 2009. Mauer was named the American League's 2009 MVP by a near-unanimous decision (27 out of 28 first place votes). On March 11, Mauer was diagnosed with inflammation in the sacroiliac joint by team doctors following a magnetic resonance arthrogram. He was unable to take part in team workouts during spring training due to the pain in his lower back, which he first began experiencing late in the 2008 season. Mauer missed the start of the 2009 regular season and returned on May 1. He went 2 for 3 with an RBI and three runs scored in his first game back, hitting a home run on his first swing of the season.

He returned May 1, and had the best month of his career. Mauer hit 11 home runs and drove in 32 RBI becoming the first-ever Twins player to reach that mark in a single month. During the week of May 18–24, Mauer led the major leagues in batting average at .458 (11-24), RBI with 13, and runs scored with 12, also hitting 4 HR and accumulating 25 total bases. On May 26, he was named MLB Player of the Week for his performance. Through the month of May, Mauer lead the major leagues in AVG at .414, OBP at .500, and SLG at .838, in addition to his HR and RBI totals, earning him his second Player of the Month Award honors.

Mauer appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated for a second time on June 24. An additional 25,000 copies of the magazine were sent to Minnesota for the occasion. He was selected to the 2009 MLB All Star Game as the starting catcher and participated in the Home Run Derby, losing a tiebreaker to Albert Pujols in the first round.

Role in 2009 AL Central race

The Twins trailed the Detroit Tigers by seven games in the American League Central division at the start of September, but rallied, winning 17 of their last 21 games to finish the season tied atop the division. On October 6, the Twins beat the Tigers 6-5 in 12 innings to secure the division title. In 2009 Mauer led the American League in batting average (.365), on-base percentage (.444), slugging percentage (.587), and OPS (1.031) Mauer became the first catcher to lead the league in all four offensive categories in a single season, and the first catcher to win three batting titles.

He has won as many batting championships in a span of four years as all other Major League catchers in the history of baseball combined. Two National League catchers have won a total of three batting titles: Eugene "Bubbles" Hargrave in 1926, and Hall of Famer Ernie Lombardi in 1938 and 1942.

On October 29, Baseball America named Mauer its 2009 Major League Player of the Year.

On November 23, Mauer was named the 2009 American League Most Valuable Player by the Baseball Writers Association of America, with 27 of 28 first place votes. This made Mauer the second catcher in 33 years to win the AL MVP.

Among active catchers with at least 600 games played, going into the 2010 season he was second with a .996 career fielding percentage, behind Mike Redmond (.996), and ahead of A.J. Pierzynski (.995) and Brad Ausmus (.994).

2010

On March 21, 2010, Mauer agreed to an eight-year contract extension with the Twins worth $184 million, which will take effect from the 2011 season to the 2018 season. It is the richest contract in the history of major league baseball for a catcher.

For the second straight year, Mauer was named the Twins' Most Valuable Player, as he was voted the Calvin R. Griffith Award.

Mauer's Quickswing Camp is held annually in the winter at a St. Paul area college. The camp teaches youth the basics of batting skills.

Joe taped an episode of Homecoming with Rick Reilly for ESPN on January 27, 2010 at Cretin-Derham Hall High School, his alma mater, in St. Paul, Minnesota. The episode aired on April 12, 2010.

Video games

On December 17, 2009 it was announced that Mauer will be featured on the cover of . He is the first catcher to be on the cover of any of the MLB the Show video games. Mauer also appears in commercials for the video game. He will return as the cover athlete for MLB 11 the Show.

Personal life

Mauer used to share a house with good friend and Twins teammate Justin Morneau in St. Paul during the 2006 season. Mauer and Morneau no longer live together, as Morneau has married.

Mauer is also recognized for the large sideburns that he has worn ever since joining the big leagues. On August 10, 2006, the Minnesota Twins held "Joe Mauer Sideburns Night" in honor of the catcher. The first 10,000 fans were given synthetic replica sideburns with double-sided tape to share in Mauer's trademark look.

Relatives

In the 2001 draft, the Twins also selected Joe's older brother Jake as the 677th overall pick in the 23rd round. Jake played at the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul. Some observers concluded that this was an attempt to induce Joe to sign a contract, but Mike Radcliff, the scouting director of the Twins, denied this. Jake Mauer ended his playing career after the 2005 season but went on to manage the Gulf Coast League Twins (Rookie Level). After winning the GCL South with the Twins in 2009, Jake moved up and currently manages the A-Ball Fort Myers Miracle. The Mauers have a third brother, Billy, who signed with the Twins as an undrafted free agent in 2003, and pitched in the organization for three seasons before chronic shoulder problems forced him to retire from the game. He ended his minor league career with a 3-4 record and 3.66 earned run average in 43 games. Billy now owns Mauer Chevrolet, an auto dealership in the Twin Cities suburb Inver Grove Heights.

References

External links

A Swing of Beauty

Right at Home - ESPN the Magazine, March 1, 2004

Did Mauer make the right choice? (Minnesota Public Radio)

Joe Mauer: Too good to be true? (Minnesota Public Radio)

Joe Mauer - TwinsCards.com Encyclopedia of Baseball Cards

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Category:1983 births Category:Living people Category:All-Star Futures Game players Category:American League All-Stars Category:American League batting champions Category:American sportspeople of Austrian descent Category:Major League Baseball catchers Category:Baseball players from Minnesota Category:Minnesota Twins players Category:People from Saint Paul, Minnesota Category:Rochester Red Wings players