His Master's Voice is a British record label owned by The Gramophone Company EMI Records. Its history began with the English joint stock company ‘Gramophone and Typewriter ltd.”, established in 1899 on the basis of a subsidiary “The Gramophone Company of the United States” (founded in 1893 by Emil Berliner).

The history of the brand started with a sad but touching event. In 1898, the artist Francis Barro created a painting* in which a fox terrier named Nipper listened to Edison's phonograph. The Nipper belonged to the artist's the deceased brother, and the dog actually froze at the device when he heard the owner's voice recorded on the cylinder.
The name "HMV" appeared in 1899, when the Gramophone Company bought the rights to the image for 100 pounds on the condition – the artist had to replace the phonograph with their new gramophone model.

On July 10, 1900, Emil Berliner registered the name "His Master's Voice" as a trademark in the patent agency. A little later, he transferred this brand to his partner Eldridge Johnson, the owner of the American company “Victor Talking Machine Company”. That is why the logo with the image of Nipper first appeared not in England, but in the USA, on the records of the American company “Victor”. In 1909, Gramophone Company Limited began using the name “His Master's Voice” and the image of Nipper on its releases – the label became the official trade mark of “The Gramophone Company Ltd”. It quickly gained a reputation of a "premium" publisher specializing in classics and opera. Under the HMV label, the first large-scale recordings of great tenors and instrumentalists in the history of music were made.
Later, the logo became international. In Germany it was known as “Stimme seines Herrn”, in France – “La Voix de son Maître”, in Italy – “La Voce del Padrone”.

Since 1913, “The Gramophone Company” became part of the EMI Corporation (Electrical and Musical Industries) and the HMV brand became its property. In 1921, the Gramophone Company founded “His Master's Voice”, a chain of music and souvenir shops. In the 1920s, the company became one of the largest manufacturers of gramophones and records in the world. It also signed contracts with numerous well-known performers, which allowed it to expand the catalogue and strengthen market position.

It was at this period that the brand became recognizable, and the Nipper terrier became a real icon. In 1931, “The Gramophone Company” merged with “The Columbia Graphophone Company”, while “The Gramophone Company” remained a label, and “His Master's Voice” became a sub-label under the management of EMI. The last UK release of “His Master's Voice” was Morrissey's live album “Beethoven Was Deaf”, released in May 1993. “His Master's Voice” (HMV) company ceased to exist. The trademark was sold to the HMV retailer. Nowadays, the brand is not free-standing – ‘His Master's Voice’ trademark continues to be used in the music business. Since 2023, Talisman Brands had licensed the ‘His Master's Voice’ brand for “Victor Musical Industries Inc”, which manufactures consumer music electronics with the ‘His Master's Voice’ logo.

The image of Nipper, a dog listening to a gramophone, has become not only a symbol of the company, but also an iconic image in the musical universe and sound recording. Its success demonstrates the power of brand marketing and the influence of visual images on the perception of products. The ‘His Master's Voice’ logo continues to be associated with sound quality and musical history, which attests to its strong position in the music business. "His Masters Voice" had been acknowledged the world's most recognizable recording logo for decades. With minor variations, the logo has been around for over 120 years.

The amazing story of the best known dog in the music industry named Nipper is published in our Audio Stories cycle.

In the 1970s, the statuette of the dog and gramophone “His Master's Voice”, was cast in bronze and was awarded by the record company (EMI) to performers, music producers or composers as a music award and often only after selling more than 100,000 recordings.

The museum “Collection” exposition features  gramophone records with the famous trade mark “His Master’s Voice”, gramophones, a reproduction of a painting by Francis Barraud depicting a dog listening to a gramophone and memorable pocket watch “Victor” (the 1930s).

*The original painting 'His Master's Voice', depicting the dog Nipper at a gramophone, is on permanent display at the Huguenot Museum in Rochester, UK. The museum acquired this iconic painting in 2025, and it is now available for public viewing as a symbol of the music industry.