Caryn Havlik

Caryn is a drummer and recovering pianist. When not breathing music, she is also a softball player, biker, and kid and adult-inspirer.

Caryn is a drummer, recovering pianist, and long-time radio producer at WNYC, on the show New Sounds with John Schaefer. Also called "The New Sounds All-Purpose Assistant" (NSAPA, for short), she enjoys trying to get brass bands more airtime, is smitten with almost all kora music ever, and loves sending clearance form letters to artists, composers, publishers and labels for use on podcasts. Yes, Schaefer's desk clutter is legendary. If it's not broke, don't fix it.

She is the drummer of the metal-folk band Zelenaya and Mortals (Relapse Records), has recorded with The All Things, and she is a Dream Cymbals Artist. Caryn teaches drums, keyboard, and audio production to folks aged 5 to 65 at the Willie Mae Rock Camp, Tom Tom Academy, and through private lessons. Her articles, interviews, and reviews on music, drumming, and not sucking at softball have been published in both Decibel and Tom Tom Magazine, the latter of which she served as the Metal issue’s co-editor (No. 13.)

When not breathing music, Havlik is a competitive softball player on three different teams, a kamikaze biker, and an acupuncture junkie. Little known facts: she holds a B.A. in Japanese Language and Literature and studies Polish on her phone in her spare time; she grew up as a classical pianist and had a pretty sweet gig as second-string organist at her church as a teenager; she very much enjoys Gilbert and Sullivan operettas and The Great British Baking Show.