He was born somewhere in the diocese of Tournai, evidently out of wedlock, and was educated at Oudenaarde. While little is known of the first two decades of his life, he probably knew or studied with Johannes Regis, and he may have studied with Johannes Ockeghem; in addition it is likely he knew Dufay at the Burgundian court of Charles the Bold, since so much of his music follows in the model of the older composer. In 1471 he went to Milan, where he joined the singers of the Sforza chapel, which included Johannes Martini, Alexander Agricola, and Loyset Compère.