Paul Beelaerts, born in Oostende on 19 July 1949, studied at the Royal Conservatories of Ghent and Brussels, where he earned first prizes in solfège, music history and English horn, as well as higher diplomas for oboe and chamber music. He then took master classes with Heinz Holliger and Maurice Bourge, as well as extra studies in Baroque oboe under Paul Dombrecht and Helmut Hucke. He was first prize winner and was awarded the Europa Prize in the Pro Civitate Competition in 1971 and in 1973 he was a prize winner in the Tenuto 73 competition for oboe. He is completely self-taught as a composer. Beelaerts was guest composer at the ISCM festival 1983 in Aarhus (Denmark). In 1977 he again won the Tenuto Prize, this time for composition, for Permutations on a theme of Martinu. In 1980 he was awarded the Nausika Composition Prize for Oppervlakkige Charleston (Superficial Charleston). He is often commissioned to write compositions for ensembles and choirs. At present he teaches oboe and woodwind literature at the Royal Conservatory in Ghent and chamber music at the Lemmens Institute in Leuven. In addition, he forms part of the Aquarius project (Antwerp Conservatory).
©2002 Herlind Gerits

Selective bibliography
- Art. Beelaerts, Paul, in Algemene Muziekencyclopedie, dl. 1, uitg. dr. J. ROBIJNS en M ZIJLSTRA, Amsterdam, 1980
- M. DELAERE, Y. KNOCKAERT en H. SABBE, Nieuwe Muziek in Vlaanderen, Brugge, 1998, p. 120

Consulting scores:
The scores of Paul Beelaerts can be consulted at Matrix:   http://www.matrix-new-music.be