Almost every category of composition is represented among his works, many of which are overtly political, expressing anti-Nazi, anti-Fascist and anti-Communist sentiments.
Hanuš studied composition independently with Otakar Jeremiáš while attending school at the Prague Conservatory, where he graduated in 1940.
He subsequently studied at a business school, and then worked both as editor and editor-in-chief of several major publishing houses, including F. A. Urbánek & Sons, and Panton (Müller 2001).
Hanuš's early works were principally aimed at the passionate, the philosophic, and the patriotic, as exhibited in his opera The Flames.
During the 1950s Hanuš bravely and publicly defended his friend Rudolf Margolius who was the victim of the Slánský trial.