HMV Chaliapine / Model 130 · Pre-war and wartime record sleeves up to 1945

“His Master’s Voice”: Chaliapine and the Model 130 gramophone

An HMV sleeve with a portrait of the bass Feodor Chaliapin on the front and the Model 130 table gramophone on the back.

Dating at a glance

Printed: c. 1928 – 1933
In use: The late 1920s and early 1930s; probably not after 1938
Confidence: Low to medium
Basis: The gramophone model advertised on the back, and the singer’s lifetime

The sleeve

Brown paper printed in dark brown. Front: H·M·V and a portrait captioned CHALIAPINE THE WORLD-FAMOUS BASS, with HEAR CHALIAPINE sing on “His Master’s Voice” RECORDS and RECORDS BY THIS ARTIST ARE LISTED IN “HIS MASTER’S VOICE” CATALOGUES.

Back: HEAR how well your records sound on a “His Master’s Voice” GRAMOPHONE, with a drawing of a table gramophone and the text MODEL 130. Has a musical capacity truly outstanding for its size. With this model available, no home need lack the glories of the greatest music.

Both faces are marked ENGLISH in small type at the lower edge. That may mean the sleeve was one language version of a design printed for several markets, but we have not confirmed this.

Brown HMV sleeve front with a portrait of Chaliapin, captioned Chaliapine the world-famous bass, and the words Hear Chaliapine sing on His Master's Voice records. — Front. Select the image for a larger view.

Brown HMV sleeve back advertising the His Master's Voice Model 130 table gramophone. — Back: the Model 130 gramophone.

The evidence

DocumentedThe Model 130. Radiomuseum lists the HMV Model 130 table grand with a tentative date of 1928, and a Christie’s sale dated an example to about 1930. The New Zealand version is listed for about 1929–33.
DocumentedThe singer. Feodor Chaliapin died on 12 April 1938 (Wikipedia).
InferredSo, probably about 1928–1933. A sleeve advertising the Model 130 as a current model belongs to its years on sale. HMV kept promoting artists after their deaths, so 1938 is only a probable upper limit.

Sources

Radiomuseum, HMV Model 130: https://www.radiomuseum.org/r/hismasters_130.html
Radiomuseum, HMV (N.Z.) Table Grand Model 130: https://www.radiomuseum.org/r/his_master_table_grand_model_130.html
Christie’s, HMV Model 130 table grand gramophone (dated about 1930): https://www.christies.com/en/lot/lot-447110
Wikipedia, Feodor Chaliapin: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feodor_Chaliapin

What we could not find

An HMV catalogue or price list giving the Model 130’s first and last years.
What the word “ENGLISH” on the sleeve means.

Researched 12 November 2026 from Simon’s photographs of that evening.