[1] He was a professional performer by the age of 14, when he played timpani in the Detroit Symphony Orchestra under Ormandy, Reiner, Goossens, Bernstein, and others while an undergraduate at the University of Michigan.
After 14 years at Ithaca College (where, in 1953, he organized the first touring percussion ensemble in the eastern United States – and the second worldwide), Benson became professor of composition at the Eastman School of Music.
During his tenure there (1967–1993), he was honored with an Alumni Citation for Excellence, the Kilbourn professorship for distinguished teaching, and was named University Mentor.
He was a founding member of the Percussive Arts Society, and was elected to its Hall of Fame, as well as to the National Band Association Academy of Excellence.
Benson's notable students include Kevin Puts, Carter Pann, Michael Glenn Williams, Eric Ewazen, Claude Baker, Robert Paterson, Gordon Stout, John Joseph Davye, Paul Phillips, Roger Briggs, Martin Amlin, Paul Mack Somers, and Michael Udow.