When his skill in art brought him a scholarship to the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn in 1916, Ellington faced a life decision. He chose music, without which, he would say later, his life would be "inexistent." But he maintained a painter's interest in colors through his music, and dozens of the titles of his compositions reflect his love of the color blue.

Ragtime and the new jazz music drew Ellington powerfully and he began composing a little. His reputation as a pianist, then bandleader, grew. He named his band The Duke's Serenaders and became a professional musician, playing in both the black community and the white.