William Thomas McKinley was an American composer and pianist whose music grew from a lifelong involvement with both concert music and jazz. Raised in New Kensington, Pennsylvania, he began piano lessons at six and was playing professionally in dance bands by ten. He studied composition with Nikolai Lopatnikoff at Carnegie Tech and later taught for more than two decades at the New England Conservatory. His performing career included work with Dexter Gordon and Wes Montgomery, and his compositions included music for Stan Getz. His honors included an American Academy of Arts and Letters music award, a Koussevitzky commission and a Guggenheim Fellowship. He also founded the Master Musicians Collective recording label.