Muhal Richard Abrams (born Richard Lewis Abrams; September 19, 1930 – October 29, 2017 Chicago) was an American educator, administrator, composer, arranger, clarinetist, cellist, and jazz pianist in the free jazz medium. He recorded and toured the United States, Canada and Europe with his orchestra, sextet, quartet, duo, and as a solo pianist.

Abrams started out “playing all kinds of gigs – blues, jazz, stage shows, rhythm and blues, and church socials.” His musical abilities earned him jobs working with “everyone from Dexter Gordon and Max Roach to Ruth Brown and Woody Shaw.”

In the mid-1950s, Abrams was becoming better known as both a pianist and a composer. A strong influence on his direction as a pianist at that time was King Fleming, for whom Abrams also composed and arranged. Another local man, William E. Jackson, helped Abrams develop his arranging and orchestration skills. Abrams co-founded a quintet named the MJT+3, and recorded with them in 1957, resulting in Daddy-O Presents MJT+3, which contained several of his compositions. Abrams also became more involved in investigating the “occult arts” around 1959 or 1960, and joined the Rosicrucians.