Born in Mettet in 1954, Alain Crepin studied saxophone, violoncello, and piano at the Conservatorio de Dinant in Belgium. He studied at the Royal Conservatory in Brussels under François Daneels and obtained superior diplomas in saxophone and chamber music. He also won first prize in harmony and counterpoint. He went on to study fugue, orchestration, and orchestral direction. He has been teaching saxophone at the Royal Conservatory in Brussels since 1981.

    In 1975 he joined the Gendarmerie Band as saxophonist. Between 1981 and 1983 he passed his exams as band director and joined the Royal Guide Band. After being promoted to second lieutenant, he was invited to lead the band of the Chasseurs Ardennais for eleven months. In 1984 he was appointed director of the band of the Belgian air force.

    He was vice-president of the International Association for the Promotion of the Saxophone between 1986 and 1997. In 1998, he was elected board member of the Saxophone Association in Paris. He has also taught at European saxophone universities in Gap in France and Alicante in Spain.

    He has written many pieces for bands, soloists and piano. Among them is ‘Homage to the Sax’ – written to commemorate the centenary of the death of the saxophone’s inventor, Adolphe Sax.

    Alein Crepin has recorded 73 CDs, either as soloist or directing the band of the Belgian air force. He is frequently invited to be a jury member in international music competitions. As well as accompanying well-known soloists, he has been invited to direct orchestras in France, Spain, Luxembourg, and Hungary.

    In 1990, he helped organise the Dinant Saxophone Symposium and is currently secretary of the International Saxophone Competition. In Dinant, on 7 November 1998 he led a single group of 1.236 saxophonists and won an entry in the Guinness Book of World Records.