John Benton is a graduate of The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill where he received his Bachelors of Music and Masters of Arts in Teaching. While at UNC, he studied piano under Steinway Artist, Dr. Mayron Tsong, and was the recipient of the Sydney M. Dowd Fellowship for Piano Studies. He has performed in notable music festivals in Italy including the Lorenzo de Medici-Tuscania Music Festival as well as The Schlern-Orfeo Music Festival in Vols am Schlern. John has performed in Argentina, Austria, Brazil, Cuba, Germany, New York City, Spain and Switzerland, performing at such venues as Carnegie Hall, Teatro Colon, The Museum of the Revolution (Havana), Cathedral of Toledo (Spain), and the AMIA Jewish Center in Buenos Aires. John is currently the head of the Piano Department at Durham School of the Arts. Throughout his teaching career, his students have received numerous prizes and participated in numerous festivals with notable performances at Carnegie Hall, Radio City Music Hall, and the Walt Disney World Resort. He has premiered works at Carnegie Hall a total of five times with notable composers such as Eric Whitacre, Maria Guinand and Alberto Grau, Greg Gilpin, and Andrea Ramsey. John's piano students have also placed first in the Elite International Piano Competition and have performed at Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall in New York. 

Over the years, John has performed with the North Carolina Symphony, The University of North Carolina Symphony, The New England Symphonic Ensemble, The Durham Choral Society, The Duke University Chapel Choir, Chamber Choir of St. Martin in the Fields (London), and the Vocal Arts Ensemble of Durham. He has worked with renowned teachers such as Nell Middleton, Dr. Mayron Tsong (Steinway Artist), Dr. Thomas Otten (Steinway Artist), Irina Krivonos (Lucy Moses School, NYC), Sergio de los Cobos (Geneva Conservatory, Switzerland), Donna Protopepscu (Belgian Conservatory), and Andre Diev (Moscow Conservatory). His written publications include program notes for pianists; Lang Lang, Leon Fleisher, Mitsuko Uchida, Pierre-Laurent Aimard, Leif Ove Andsnes, and Radu Lupu.

In 2021, John became a Steinway and Sons Verified Piano Teacher. Recently in 2024, Benton Piano Studios became a Steinway and Sons Teacher and Educational Partner. John is a member of the National Association of Music Educators, Music Teachers National Association, American Choral Directors Association, North Carolina Music Educators Association, and the Raleigh Piano Teachers Association. John serves as the head of the Piano Department at Durham School of the Arts where he teaches over 90 aspiring pianists daily.