Greg Pise – Award for Excellence in Music

Greg Pise is a senior at Passaic County Technical Institute, an electric bass player, and a long time student of NJPAC Jazz For Teens. He maintained a high GPA and will graduate in the top third of his class. Greg is a four year member of the Tri-M Honor Society. He had started his music studies in Lincoln Park on piano, but eventually began playing the electric bass and fell in love with it.

He focused mostly on heavy metal, punk, and rock music. When Greg moved to Clifton and started attending high school, he began playing the upright bass and was introduced to jazz. He was inspired by the strong ideas and emotions expressed in jazz, as well as the technical skill of jazz musicians. Greg immersed himself in the genre, learning as much jazz as possible and all its different forms.
Lately, he has found passion in neo-soul, hip-hop, and R&B music. He finds these to not only encompass all the emotion jazz, but they also connect deeply with the public. He will start a degree this fall at Berklee College of Music. After college Greg plans to join a band and contribute greatly to the music community.