After studies at the New England Conservatory of Music in violin, organ and harmony, Jones entered Dartmouth College in 1872.
That same year, Jones was a violinist among the thousands of instrumentalists and singers who played at the World's Peace Jubilee and International Musical Festival in Boston, organized by bandmaster Patrick Gilmore.
One of the special invited guests was the Viennese composer, Johann Strauss Jr., who performed some of his popular waltzes.
The other major choral work by Jones was his oratorio, Easter Concert, for soloists, chorus and orchestra.
He was largely responsible for the Stoughton Musical Society's invitation to perform at the World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago in 1893.