John Murphree holds a M.M. and a B.M. in composition from The Boston Conservatory and Berklee College of Music, respectively. He studied composition extensively with Andy Vores and John Bavicchi, participated in song writing master classes with Samuel Adler and William Bolcolm and completed advanced welding and sculpture studies with Dennis Svoronos at the Museum of Fine Arts School (Boston).

Murphree designs and fabricates original percussion instruments, principally made of metal, which are used in live performance and are also pre-recorded for performance. His acoustic compositions and arrangements have been played by various ensembles, as well as by Yo-Yo Ma, Lynn Chang and The Boston Conservatory’s Hemenway Strings. He has collaborated in the Juddertone Choreography Project, and his sound installations have been staged at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts and Mobius gallery in Boston.

In 2009, Murphree was invited to join the theory faculty at The Boston Conservatory. He and his wife live in Malden, Massachusetts.