Romāns Vanags graduated from the Emils Darzins Music School and from the Department of Choir and Orchestra Conducting at the Jazeps Vitols Latvian Academy of Music in Riga. He received a diploma in Choir Conducting and in Music Pedagogy. In addition, he also studied Orchestra Conducting. In 2003 he received a professional master’s degree in Music. 

Since 1990 he has been the principal conductor of the Latvian University women’s choir “Minjona”. From 1987 on he has been principal conductor and artistic director of Jāzeps Mediņš Riga 1st Music School boys’ choir. Romāns Vanags has been a professor for Choir Conducting at the Latvian Academy of Music in Riga since 1987 and was the director of the conducting department from 2005 to 2012. 

He has organised various courses for conductors in numerous countries around the world and has also been a jury member for several international choir competitions. Furthermore, he was appointed as one of the principal conductors of the All Latvian Song Celebration (1993, 1998, 2001, 2003, 2008, 2013, 2018). Since 2008 he has also been a council member of the World Choir Games (WCG) organisation. Romāns Vanags was the artistic director of the WCG 2014 in Riga. Since August 2014 Romāns Vanags has been the artistic director of Interkultur (Germany) organisation. In 2008, he received the highest civil honour in Latvia – the Three Star Order. Professor Romāns Vanags has been elected as the Artistic Director of the All Latvian Song Celebration for 2023.