Name: Frida Miedema
Country: The Netherlands
Instagram profile: @fridam70
Speakers: DALI ZENSOR 3
Music: Frida's playlist (on Tidal)
Line of work:
I am a food technologist and currently work as a senior product developer in a large food company. Since 2 years I picked up my studies again: I'm trying to get a master's degree in Environmental Sciences. It is nice to combine work and study, keeps me inspired.
How do you listen to music in your everyday life?
In the car and at work, I love to listen to the radio, preferably Dutch Radio 2 or 3 - they both have a good pick of new and older music. At home, I mostly play vinyl albums on my Denon record player & amp and DALI speakers. I really love playing records: picking an album from the shelve, starting the record, looking at the sleeve, turning it to the other side after just 20 minutes. The whole experience is much more active than just putting your iPod in the docking station (which I have and use as well) and listen to it on shuffle play.
When/how did your interest for hi-fi begin?
When I was in my teens, I used to frequent a youth centre, where we had a good stereo system. It was around 1986, and CD's started to replace vinyl. I didn't have any money to buy records or my own stereo, but loved to play records there with my friends (I remember playing The Waterboys' The Whole of the Moon really loud). In 1989 I bought my first stereo set with money I earned during my vacation. I still didn't have a lot of money as a student, so then I used to borrow CD's at the library and copied them to cassette on my stereo. Later, I put all my CD's on my iPod and played them on my Bose docking station, which has quite good sound, but I started to miss the real music experience. The answer off course was: vinyl! So for a year now, I've started to collect vinyl again and finally bought a good hi-fi set (I don't know why I waited so long to do that!?).
Do you prefer: CD, vinyl or digital?
I prefer vinyl for the warm sound and the whole physical experience of having the record, the cover art, the lyrics sheets and actually playing it. I also love the fact that you are more or less forced to play the songs in the order, the artist put them on the record. You can't easily skip a song or play them in random order, like you can on CD or digital. I also love to go to thrift shops, vinyl stores and flee markets to search for second hand records. The joy of finding an album by a favourite artist in good shape for a nice price is quite addictive. Besides listening to records on vinyl, I like to use Spotify to explore new music. Then, if I find something I like, I want it on vinyl. :)
Why do you think that there isn’t that many women represented in the audiophile world?
I don't really experience it that way to be honest. I follow quite a lot of women on Instagram who love music and their audio setup just like me.
Which track will always wake a feeling in you?
It is really hard to pick just one song, but David Bowie's Life on Mars really makes me happy and emotional at the same time (and I sing along really loud).
How/where do you discover new music and artists?
I go to festivals a lot, preferably those that host indie/alternative rock artists - like Lowlands and Best Kept Secret (both in the Netherlands). This is where I discover a lot of new bands. And I hear a lot of new music through Dutch Radio 3FM and Spotify.
The last two records that you have bought?
Those were 2 second hand vinyl albums: Hounds of Love by Kate Bush and Little Creatures by Talking Heads.
Is there an artist, genre or period that you are particularly fond of?
David Bowie! I just love his music and his voice, the way he reinvented himself again and again until the very end. I regret that I have never been able to see him live, but last weekend I visited his musical Lazarus in London, which was great! Another favorite is Bruce Springsteen, who I saw live several times, and who I consider the best live artist there is.
Which records are the pride of your collection?
Definitely my David Bowie records. I now own 25 of his records on vinyl and play at least one of them every day.
What has been your best live concert experience?
Last year's Bruce Springsteen & the E street Band concert at The Hague. It had rained all day, but when the concert started, the sun came out and Bruce and the band gave a magnificent concert of 3,5 hours. It was the first time I took my oldest son to a Bruce concert, and it was great seeing him enjoy it so much.
What made you choose DALI speakers for your home stereo?
When I decided, I wanted to play vinyl again, I started to follow vinyl lovers on Instagram to see what kind of equipment they had, and among them were some users that had DALI speakers. I loved the design, read good reviews and just bought them online together with my Denon record player and amplifier. When I had everything set up, it was a pure joy for the ears and the eyes. I love the sound, both when played at low and high volume and really like the design of my white DALI ZENSOR 3 speakers.
What would be the ultimate playlist for your DALI speakers?
1. David Bowie - Life on Mars
2. Bruce Springsteen - Jungleland
3. Muse - Supermassive Black Hole
4. Arcade Fire - Wake Up
5. The Killers - Mr. Brightside
6. Kate Bush - The Man With The Child In His Eyes
7. Editors - Smokers Outside The Hospital Door
8. Radiohead - Creep
9. Suzanne Vega - The Queen And The Soldier
10. David Bowie - Blackstar
Frida's playlist on Tidal in its full length
Photo credit: Frida Miedema
