"René Bloice-Sanders is outstanding as Figaro, imbuing the character with an irrepressible spark of mischief and singing with gusto and panache." - Nicola Lisle (Oxford Times) (2015)

"René Bloice-Sanders is outstanding as Figaro. Bloice-Sanders – his eyes twinkling knowingly and his moustache twirling confidently – sings his famous first number so freshly that you feel you’re hearing it for the first time. His intonation and timing are highly accomplished and he’s no mean actor, especially when he catches the audience’s eye with a knowing look." - Susan Elkin (2015)

"Bloice-Sanders displayed lovely tone and power...Orfeo's despair and ensuing fortitude in the face of the challenge from Charon were rendered superbly" - David Karlin (Bachtrack) (2012)

"I particularly loved Orfeo's lament towards the end of the opera: Bloice-Sanders sung it with power and dignity" - David Karlin (Bachtrack) (2012)

René’s vocal training began as a treble in Canterbury Cathedral Choir and he has never looked back, becoming a member of the National Youth Choir of Great Britain shortly after his voice broke. He graduated from The University of Nottingham with a BA (Hons) in 2010, where he performed regularly with a number of choirs in the East Midlands, including Schola Cantorum of St Barnabas’ Cathedral, and as a member of Opsoc, the University Opera Society. In September 2011 René began a postgraduate in Vocal Performance at the Royal Academy of Music and studied under the tutelage of Ryland and the in-demand vocal coach Audrey Hyland. He was awarded the Nora Carstairs Bland Award 2012/2013 and graduated with distinction in June 2013.

On the opera stage René has performed the roles of Marcello (La boheme), Figaro (Il barbiere di Siviglia), Marco (Gianni Schicchi), Morales and Dancairo (Carmen), Orfeo (L’Orfeo) and Baron Duphol (La Traviata), operatic scenes as Malatesta (Don Pasquale), Taddeo (L’Italiana in Algeri), Guglielmo and Don Alfonso (Cosi Fan Tutte) and Mercurio (La Calisto), and his concert work has included Bach’s Johannes and Matthaus Passion, Brahms’ A German Requiem, Handel’s Messiah, Monteverdi’s Vespers, Mozart’s Requiem, Duruflé's Requiem and Stainer’s The Crucifixion. Whilst he enjoys these large ensemble solo settings he also has a passion for song cycles, of which he has performed Beethoven's An Die Ferne Geliebte, Butterworth's A Shropshire Lad and Vaughan-Williams' Songs of Travel.

Upcoming performances include the role of Belcore in Donizetti's L'elisir d'amore with Jackdaws OperaPLUS, bass soloist in performances of Bach's St John Passion and Beethoven's Mass in C in St John Smith Square and working with Garsington Opera in Summer 2016.

René is grateful to The Josephine Baker Trust, The Clive Pare Memorial Fund, The Seary Trust and The Ruby and Will George Trust for their generous support.

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