John began his study of cello at the age of seven with Boris Kogan. In high school, John was sponsored by the Five College, Early Music Program and studied both cello and viola de gamba. At age sixteen, John made his conducting debut in Venice, Italy and upon graduation received the National Orchestra Award.
While an undergraduate at The Boston Conservatory of Music at Berklee, John was named a Jephson Educational Trust Scholar. Throughout his undergraduate degree, John studied with both Rhonda Rider and Andrew Mark. Wishing to pursue a career as a conductor, John founded the Eclipse Symphony Orchestra which debuted in Boston in 2009.
John received The Bachelor of Music Degree from The Boston Conservatory of Music in 2010. In the fall of 2010, John was accepted too and named an Ambassador of the Longy School of Music of Bard College, where he continued his graduate study of cello performance under Boston Symphony cellist, Mihail Jojatu. Hanifin was awarded The Masters of Music Degree in 2012.
Following his Masters Degree, John began John Hanifin Band. A group of extremely diverse musicians performing through out the country. While operating John Hanifin Band, John received endorsements from NS Design, D’Addario Strings, Rutman Strings, Coda Bows & Takamine Guitars. In 2016 John was asked to be a featured soloist in Joel A. Martins “Footsteps of Mandela”.
In 2021, John released his first published solo cello composition entitled “Wenonah” followed closely by a collaboration Hanifin produced for artist “DSharp” which premiered on YouTube in July of 2021 entitled “Crossroads”. John used both “Crossroads” & his arrangement of “Ave Maria” for two cellos to launch his newest venture & production company, ONE7SEVEN Productions.
In 2023, Hanifin will premier two music videos filmed in London, England for his debut solo album “Clean House” – set to release April of 2023. While in London, Hanifin’s solo cello composition “Wenonah” was added to the Royal Academy Of Music Library.
