Boeykens studied the clarinet at the Royal Conservatory of Music Brussels. In 1965 he won the International competition for contemporary music of
Utrecht (Netherlands). Between 1964 en 1984 he was principal clarinetist of Belgian Radio and Television (BRT) Philharmonic Orchestra. On December 20, 1968, he created Domaines by
Pierre Boulez —originally written for
Hans Deinzer— in the version for Clarinet and Orchestra with the
BRT Philharmonic Orchestra under the direction of the composer himself. This achievement launched him onto the path of a successful career as a soloist. As a consequence, he was invited to many of the big European music festivals such as those of Berlin, Paris, Warschau, Salzburg, and last but not least to the festivals of Wallonia and Flanders (both in Belgium). He appeared as soloist in numerous concerts in Israel, the US, Venezuela, Japan, Korea... Leaving the BRT philharmonic in 1984 allowed him to fully develop his career as a soloist, and play under the 'baton of famous conductors such as
Charles Münch,
Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos,
Gary Bertini,
Leonard Bernstein,
James Conlon, and many others. In 1969, Boeykens was appointed professor at the
Royal Flemish Music Conservatory of Antwerp. In 1972 he became professor at the
Académie internationale d'été de Nice. Additionally, Walter Boeykens held assignments at the conservatories of
Utrecht,
Rotterdam and at the Fontys Conservatory in
Tilburg all in the Netherlands. Last but not least, he taught at the "
Cité de la Musique" in Paris, France and at the "
Scuola di Alto Perfezionamente Musicale" in
Turin in Italy. In 1981, he founded the
Walter Boeykens Clarinet Choir at the Royal Flemish Music Conservatory of
Antwerp. In 1987 he was on the jury of the
Jeunesses Musicales International Competition in
Belgrade. The jury members were: •
Milenko Stefanovic, Yugoslavia, President •
James Campbell, Canada • Walter Boeykens, Belgium •
Ludwig Kurkiewicz, Poland •
Thea King, UK •
Ernest Ackun, Yugoslavia •
Marko Rudzak, Yugoslavia •
Stjepan Rabuzin, Yugoslavia In 1997 and 2001 he was on the jury of the Carl Nielsen International Music Competitions. In 1997 the jury was composed of: •
Colin Bradbury President, UK •
Michel Arrignon France • Walter Boeykens, Belgium •
Hans Deinzer Germany •
John Kruse Denmark •
Lee Morgan USA •
Charles Neidich USA •
Jens Schou Denmark •
Kjell-Inge Stevensson Sweden •
Niels Thomsen Denmark In 2001, jury members were: •
Hans Deinzer Germany, President •
Michel Arrignon France •
Søren Birkelund Denmark • Walter Boeykens Belgium •
Béla Kovács Hungary •
John Kruse Denmark •
Sabine Meyer Germany •
Charles Neidich USA •
Jens Schou Denmark •
Kjell-Inge Stevensson Sweden On 23 April 2013 it was announced that Boeykens had died at the age of 75. ==Prizes and honours==