Sanna van Vliet studied jazz vocals with Judy Niemack and Rachel Gould, and jazz piano with Frans Elsen at the Royal Conservatoire in The Hague, graduating in both principal subjects. Subsequently, she attended the three-year teacher training programme Complete Vocal Technique (CVT) in Copenhagen. During her conservatory studies, she founded her own quartet with which she performed at leading jazz venues, jazz festivals and theatres such as the North Sea Jazz Festival, Amersfoort Jazz Festival, Meerjazz, The Hague Jazz Festival, Bimhuis, De Tor, Breda Jazz Festival, Red Light Jazz Festival and more. She gave concerts in Germany, Sweden, Denmark, Switzerland, Austria, Poland, Belgium, Finland, Tunisia, Slovenia, the Azores, Italy, Norway, China, Thailand and South Korea and performed with Ruud Jacobs, Martijn van Iterson, Frans Elsen, John Engels, Rob van Kreeveld, Beets Brothers, Ferdinand Povel, Tineke Postma, Wouter Hamel, Harry Emmery, Eric Ineke, Doug Rainey, Jarmo Hoogendijk, Peter Bernstein and Joe Cohn, among others.

Sanna released six CDs under her own name, the last two albums of which contain purely her own compositions. Besides her own formations Sannavan and Something About Sanna, she sings in the 9-member ensemble Chamber9.

Sanna is a regular teacher at the Conservatorium van Amsterdam. She teaches vocal improvisation, ensembles, piano accompaniment for vocalists and editing standards. Additionally, she has been a guest teacher at the conservatoires of Maastricht, Groningen, Enschede and The Hague and has given workshops in Spain, China and South Korea.

"Sanna is a fantastic pianist first and foremost. She plays the piano fantastically, but in addition she sings so incredibly well. It's rare that a pianist can also sing so very well and she timed and she really swings." - Rita Reys

“Sanna van Vliet’s cd Dance on the Moon is my favorite cd that has been sent to me lately! She has a beautiful, inviting sound, and great bebop lines, nice piano feel. I love the scat solos, and I am very picky about this topic - most scat singing is so far from the instrumental understanding that I think it requires.  Hers is the 'real deal'.” - Darmon Meader, New York Voices.