Dominique Chenet heeft haar "hifi-sporen" destijds verdiend bij JADIS, waar zij verantwoordelijk was voor de export. Zij is daardoor wereldwijd persoonlijk bekend met de meest vooraanstaande fabrikanten en distributeurs. Afkomstig uit Zuid-Frankrijk, maar jarenlang gewoond hebbende in New York, spreekt zij vloeiend Frans, Engels en bijna Nederlands. Naast haar huidige funktie van direktrice van een speciaaldrukkerij is zij nog steeds betrokken bij de specifieke "high-end wereld". Zij verzorgt de brochures van diverse hifi-fabrikanten en is uitputtend betrokken bij de organisatie en voorbereiding van HIFI NOTES. Buitenlandse hifishows worden regelmatig door haar bezocht en showrapporten van haar hand mogen dan ook worden verwacht.
Born in 1963 in Tours (what is considered as being the center of France), I was around 5 years old when my parents decided to move to the South of France to a middle size village called Montreal. This move was not easy because we had no family in the South and because we were moving from a city to live in a village. In order to give me the opportunity to meet other kids, my mother decided that I was going to follow ballet classes. Well, that was my real first approach with music and I ended practicing ballet -and later modern dance- for 13 years. My mother likes classical and opera music and she "obliged" us to watch and to listen to every concert and opera on tv or to go with her to the music hall. I have to admit that at that time it was really an obligation and I still cannot "digest" the organ concerts. But now I can only say "Thanks Mam", but please no organ concerts anymore!!.
Later I moved to New York City. What a big change!! I lived on Central Park West (between 62nd and 63rd) -facing the park!-, on the 18th floor. I arrived the day Simon and Garfunkel were having their concert in the park. I spent my evening at the window watching the concert with binoculars and with MTV playing in the background for the sound. It was just great… I was going to school there and I met a few friends involved into music and I spent a lot of nights in underground clubs listening to all kind of new groups. One of my friends was involved in the production of video clips and I ended up one night dining at the same table than Mike Jagger. For sure he does not remember, but I do…
But then the partying- and studying time was over and I had to find a job. I went back to France and I started to work with a company called Jadis. I was in charge of the export activities. We worked with a lot of different countries but mainly in Asia and I had to travel a lot. Hong Kong, Taipei, Singapore, Seoul, Tokyo, Bangkok, Surabaya, Safat, Ryaad, Kuala Lumpur, Jakarta… became familiar places. In average I visited the distributors twice a year. Besides, I was going to the main hifi shows in the world. And I met a very special race called "audiophiles". I also discovered that equipment was important and that sound could sound different. Until that time, I only had a mini stereo (sorry guys!) at home. But I finally got the big cake when Jadis decided to pay me my extra hours with a Jadis system: DA100 amplifier, JP30 preamplifier, cables and speakers made by Mr André Calmettes himself. I also got a Micromega cd-player (a working one, lucky me). It was my first real hifi-system.
Herman van den Dungen was at that time the Jadis distributor for Belgium and Luxembourg. I met him for the first time at the Las Vegas Ces. One year later, I moved to Holland and I stopped with Jadis. I got a new job, but not in hifi (in the printing industry). But I am still following the hifi activities. I go every year to the US CES and STEREOPHILE shows. I read the main hifi magazines: Stereophile, Hifi News, The Absolute Sound. I also go quite often to DÉ HIFIWINKEL on Saturday. Just because I like it. That way I am also able to listen to the best audio components in the world. Go one time to that shop and you will understand what I mean.