Jean Sulem studied at the Paris Conservatoire in the class of Serge Collot. In 1981, Pierre Boulez chose him to become a soloist of the Ensemble Intercontemporain. Very active in contemporary music, he has performed key works of the contemporary solo viola repertoire (Zimmerman, Maderna, Berio, Donatoni, Nunes, Grisey, Holliger, Ton That Tiet, Lévinas, Ligeti...) at the greatest international festivals and has inspired numerous new works.
For many years, Jean Sulem has been a partner musician of the pianist and conductor Sir András Schiff.
Alongside his work as a soloist, Jean Sulem pursues an important career as a chamber musician. Since its founding in 1981, he has been the violist of the Rosamonde Quartet, with which he pursues an intense international career.
In 1989 he succeeded Serge Collot and, at the age of thirty, became Professor of viola at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique de Paris. He regularly gives masterclasses in Europe and the United States. He is also regularly invited to sit on the juries of international competitions.