Following in the steps of his father (who worked for the state post office) Schlusnus initially worked as a postal employee in Frankfurt. However he also took singing lessons, again emulating his father who sang in a male-voice quartet, and made his first concert appearance in Frankfurt in 1912. With the outbreak of World War I in 1914 however he joined the German army and saw active service, sustaining a leg injury at the Belgian front in 1914.
Schlusnus now turned to music as a career, making his operatic stage debut with the Hamburg Opera in 1915 as the Herald / Lohengrin. Between 1915 and 1917 he was a member of the opera company at Nuremberg, before joining the Berlin Court (later State) Opera in 1917, making his debut here as Wolfram / Tannhäuser and remaining with this company until 1945. Schlusnus played a key role in the Verdi renaissance of the 1920s and 1930s in Germany. He sang Montfort in the Berlin State Opera premiere of I vespri siciliani in 1932, while other Verdi roles central to his repertoire included di Luna / Il trovatore, Germont père / La traviata, Don Carlo / La forza del destino and Posa / Don Carlo.
After his move to Berlin Schlusnus continued to study the art of lieder singing with Louis Bachner and gave his first song recital in Berlin at the Blüthner Hall in 1918. He quickly established a reputation as a song recitalist of distinction and was to give more than 2,000 recitals during his career. While firmly based at the State Opera in Berlin, he also toured extensively, appearing in concert in Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria (Sofia, 1925), England, France (Paris, 1931 and 1937), Holland and Italy, as well as in North America and Canada.
Guest opera performances were also numerous: Schlusnus sang with the principal German opera companies and in Amsterdam (1919, 1932 and 1934), Barcelona (1922), Zürich (1922, 1938, 1948); with the Vienna State Opera (1923), the Budapest Opera (1925), Stockholm (1932) and the Paris Opera (1937). He appeared with the Chicago Opera during its 1927–1928 season, receiving praise for his Wolfram / Tannhäuser; and made his only appearance at the Bayreuth Festival in 1933 as Amfortas / Parsifal. He recorded and broadcast extensively throughout the 1920s, 1930s and 1940s, featuring prominently in the radio broadcasts of music made by the Third Reich, many of which have been preserved.
After World War II Schlusnus appeared on the American military government’s blacklist because of his close association with the Nazi party and its leadership, but was exonerated by the relevant denazification panel in 1947. During this period he sang with the Frankfurt Opera, making his last appearance there in the title role of Rigoletto in 1948.
During the following year Schlusnus toured South Africa and made his final appearances in 1951, singing Germont père with the Koblenz Opera and Montfort with Frankfurt radio; he also gave his last song recital.
It was his well-schooled and naturally warm-toned voice, with its easy top, that made Schlusnus an ideal Verdi baritone; while his command of vocal style ensured performances of exemplary taste and discretion.
© Naxos Rights International Ltd. — David Patmore (A–Z of Singers, Naxos 8.558097-100).