Ian Mahaffey currently in his second year of pursuing a Doctoral of Musical Arts degree in Percussion Performance at the University of South Carolina. Mahaffey is a student of Dr. Scott Herring and is a graduate assistant where he teaches lessons and directs the Palmetto Pans Steel Band. Outside of his responsibilities as a student, he is an active performer and educator where he has his own private lessons studio, and is a percussion instructor at Blythewood High School. Before beginning his doctoral studies, he completed his master’s degree in Percussion Performance at the University of South Carolina, and completed his undergraduate studies at Coastal Carolina University, under Dr. Jesse Willis.

While Mahaffey was in High School, he was a member of Coastal Surge Drum and Bugle Corps where he played snare drum and was a Drum Corps International Open-Class finalist in 2014. He was later appointed to battery section leader in 2015. During his last year of his undergrad at Coastal Carolina University, Mahaffey taught the percussion section of the Coastal Carolina University Chanticleer Regiment Marching Band. Mahaffey has also served as a percussion instructor for a variety of high school band programs around the state of South Carolina. Mahaffey is a proud educational endorser of Vic Firth and Zildjian.