Howard E. Pratt was born on June 30, 1875 in Webster, New York. Before he began his musical career, he was employed in the newspaper business. A veteran of the Spanish-American War, Pratt remained active in veterans' affairs up until the time of his death. At the time of his marriage to Mabel Woolsey, he was editor of the Marshall Statesman. He then switched careers to become a singer and music teacher. Pratt received his musical education at the State Normal conservatory at Ypsilanti, Michigan and the University of Michigan school of music in Ann Arbor. He toured California in 1908 and performed in several shows. By 1913, Pratt had relocated to the East Bay in the San Francisco area where he was associated with the California Institute of Musical Art as a teacher. In 1917, Pratt was in Santa Rosa, California as the director of the Santa Rosa Choral Society. By 1919, he worked at Whitman College in Walla Walla, Washington as the director of the Men’s Glee Club, Girl’s Glee Club, Whitman Choral Society, and the Whitman All-College Glee Club. He was also director of the Whitman Conservatory of Music, was tenor in the Walla Walla Symphony Club, and guest conductor of the Walla Walla College Choral Society. He remained in Walla Walla as director and head of the voice department of the Whitman Conservatory before his death on December 15, 1936.