Musician's Biographies
Getting to know.... Pete Sencevicky
He’s the quiet man behind the string bass; he’s the vocalist singing about his long-lost Sister Kate; and he’s the “father” of theDixieland Society. But there’s a long story behind Pete.
The fifth child of Russian immigrant parents, he was born at home in South River, NJ, in what he describes as the Russian Ghetto.
When he attended school at age 5, he spoke no English, only Russian. His older sister helped him early on with the language, but
he picked up the “you’s guys, des, dem, and does” of the New Jersey accent from his friends. She stepped in again during high school
and further encouraged him to develop good communication skills. Which he did!
During that time, he found that was more to life than the strict work ethic of his parents. A friend took him to a night club whereDixieland was played and he was hooked. In the music room at school, an unused string bass was standing in the corner, but in order
to get instruction on it, he had to learn to play the tuba in the band. He practiced both of them in the attic at home and he was
told to play along with records.
Well, he didn’t have that many records, so he ventured back to the night club and asked if he could play with the band. He was just
a kid, so they turned him down. But he was persistent, so they said he could use the janitor’s closet near the men’s room where
he was able to hear the band and play along. He did that for several weeks until one of the musicians had to go to the bathroom during
a set, heard him play, and invited him on stage. Thus started a long journey of Pete and his bass.
He graduated from Trenton State Teachers College, including a two year stint in the Army, with a degree in Elementary Education.
He taught grades 5 and 6 for 14 years in Rockaway, NJ, and was a principal there for another 7 years. He became intrigued with the
Special Ed programs that became mandated by the State, so he went back to school to earn his Masters in Special Education from Yeshiva
University in New York City. He taught Special Ed students for another 9 years before he and his wife, Gretta, moved to Hilton Head
in 1988. He taught Special Ed in Dale, SC, near Beaufort, for another 2 years.
Being a “giver” rather than a “taker”, he gets a thrill out of helping others, giving little gifts to people, and encouraging volunteersup on stage to have fun.