Erkki Lauri Alste holds a master of music degree from the Sibelius-Academy in Helsinki, majoring in violin and singing (diploma with excellence). His singing teachers include Liisa Linko-Malmio, Sauli Tiilikainen and the legendary Finnish baritone Jorma Hynninen. He also graduated as a voice teacher and a choir conductor. He continued his voice studies at the music conservatory in Aachen, Germany, in the class of Prof. Rudolf Bautz.

After his return to Finland he worked as a music teacher and led several choirs. From 1991 to 1996 he served as director of the popular "Tikkurila song classes" and concert cycle bound to the festival. In 1994 he started his first music agency named Orfeo Music, where he acted as a concert producer as well as agent for young Finnish opera singers. Between 1997 and 2001 he led the Savonlinna Opera Agency bound to the well known international opera festival.

In 2001 he moved to Germany and continued his work as an agent and in 2003, founded the agency Opera-Connection in Berlin together with his colleague Guido Mödersheim. In 2015 he founded a second agency "Stretta Artists Management" which he is running together with Rita Ahonen, based in Basel Swizerland. Since few years Alste has partisipated in the juries of several international singing competitions and has given masterclasses for young students. He has also founded an annual "Audition and Repertoire Workshop for Young Opera Singers" which was held first in Germany and since 2017 in Chieti, Italy.