Ernest van der Eyken

Ernest Jozef Leo van der Eyken (23 July 1913 in Antwerp – 6 February 2010 in Brussels) was a Belgian composer, conductor and violist. Van der Eyken received his first musical training at the age of five at the Music Academy in Sint-Truiden. At the age of seven he joined the music theory class of Karel Candael at the Royal Music Conservatory in Antwerp. In 1930 he obtained his first degree under Jan Broeckx, and in 1931, a further degree in viola studying with Napoleon Distelmans.