Ruşen Güneş studied at the Ankara State Conservatory with Necdet Remzi Atak, with Frederick Riddle at London Royal College of Music and with William Primrose at Indiana University in Bloomington.

After having the principal viola positions with the Presidential Symphony Orchestra in Ankara, the Royal Opera Orchestra and the English Chamber Orchestra in London he served as principal with the London Philharmonic Orchestra (1978- 1987) and the BBC Symphony Orchestra (1988–2000). He also appeared as soloist with all these orchestras and worked under eminent conductors including Boulez, Barenboim, Haitink, Davis, Rattle, Gardiner, Solti and Tennstedt.

Among his recordings are Saygun’s Viola Concerto with LPO, Hindemith’s Trauer Music and Telemann’s Viola Concerto with the Borusan Chamber Orchestra, Mozart’s Symphonie Concertante with violinist Suna Kan and the Ankara Chamber Orchestra, Berlioz’ Harold en Italie in the piano transcription of Liszt with Idil Biret and with the London String Quartet, where he was a member for fifteen years, Brahms and Franck Piano Quintets and Mahler’s Piano Quartet with Idil Biret and Boccherini’s Guitar Quintet with John Williams. For many years he was a professor of viola at Yaşar University in İzmir, Turkey.