Richard Strivens, bass-baritone, originally from Kent, grew up in Belgium and graduated from Oxford University in Chemistry. He studied singing at the National Opera Studio, the Royal Northern College of Music and EurOperaStudio, Milan.

He has sung Nick Shadow (The Rake's Progress) for English Touring Opera, the Stage Technician (The Makropulos Case) for Glyndebourne Festival Opera, Don Giovanni and Figaro for Ryedale Festival Opera, Colline for Scottish Opera on Tour and Tergisto (Messalina) at the Batignano Festival in Italy.

Other Mozart roles include the Count for Pimlico Opera and Simone (La finta semplice) for the Classical Opera Company and Masetto at Cologne Opera. From the Handel bass repertoire, he has sung Tiridate and Melisso; also, Zoroastro (Orlando) and Ariodate (Xerxes) for the Cambridge Handel Opera Group. Richard appeared as Giovanni in Channel 4's Don Giovanni masterclass with Sir Thomas Allen. He is Giovanni in Opera Anywhere's modern transcription of the opera.

More modern roles include Boatman/Lightning in Julian Philip's children's opera Dolffin for WNO Max, Vermeer in Birtwistle's The Second Mrs Kong, Håkon in Maxwell Davies' The Martyrdom of St Magnus for The Opera Group and Britten's Noah, Collatinus and Hel Helson. Richard created the role of Abbot Samson in Judith Bingham's The Ivory Tree.

Concerts include Bach Ich habe genug with Nicholas Daniels and St Matthew Passion with Nicholas Cleobury, both with Britten Sinfonia, Weihnachts-Oratorium with Timothy Noon at St David's Cathedral. With the Joyful Company of Singers he has recorded Strauss Deutsche Mottete and Messiah. He has sung Verdi's Requiem at the Bridgewater Hall with the combined North West Choral Societies, Pulcinella with the Birmingham Royal Ballet conducted by Barry Wordsworth, The Apostles at Eton College with Ralph Allwood, this summer taking part in the Elgar celebrations with The Kingdom at St David's Cathedral and The Dream of Gerontius at The Sage in Gateshead.