 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Ashley91489
Date: 2009-02-02 01:57
I realize that different barrels can affect tuning but other than that, why are these supposedly superior to other barrels out there?
I'm currently using the one that came with my R-13. I can see what a huge difference mouthpieces can make but what about a barrel? I don't understand exactly how and in what ways a higher quality barrel can improve sound. I'm sure they do otherwise people would not regard them so highly so that is what I'm curious about. Exactly what do they improve and what makes them such a great addition to the clarinet setup?
In the end, is it worth the high price tag for one of these Backun barrels?
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Author: Ed Palanker
Date: 2009-02-02 03:05
Ashley, I believe this has been addressed several times here already but I'll reiterate. The great English clarinet player of the past, Jack Brymer, claimed that the barrel is really an extension of the mouthpiece. I totally agree with him and that's why it makes so much difference. Think of it as a longer mouthpiece. As far as the brand, I love the Backuns but that doesn't mean that everyone else that has ever tried one thinks that as well. It's a matter of finding what gives you the quality, feel and intonation that you desire. You really have to try several to find out. Every barrel of every make plays slightly different. I tried at least a dozen Backuns before finding what I like and I now have one for each of my clarinets. But in all fairness, there are many other quality barrels on the market; you simply have to try them to see what's best for you. ESP
www.peabody.jhu.edu/457
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Author: kdk
Date: 2009-02-02 15:32
It's so difficult to know when or if different woods produce different sound qualities. I tried, a couple of years ago, a dozen or so barrels that Morrie Backun sent "on approval." Some were grenadilla, some were cocobola with a couple of each style that he makes in each wood. I found that the barrels were each so different from each other in their bore measurements that I couldn't find two identical barrels in different woods to compare. Some grenadillas were "darker" than some cocobolas. I'm not well enough equipped in acoustical theory to be able to say one way or the other, but I think the design and the actual execution of the barrel's dimensions may have much more to do with differences between them.
So, my advice to Ashley would be to try different barrels (you can get them for trial from any of several music companies) without limiting yourself to a particular maker or material. The answer to your final question - are they worth the cost (whether Backun's or someone else's - they're all expensive) - is one you'll have to answer for yourself after you've tried some and found if they improve your instrument or not.
Karl
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Author: Bob Phillips
Date: 2009-02-02 19:52
A key point so far in this thread comes from Prof. Palanker: tried a dozen.
At ClarinetFest a couple years ago, I spent a good half hour and 2-dozen barrels finding one that would help me slip smoothly into the altissimo register. Of those 24 barrels, only 2 or 3 were really good candidates to replace my Buffet and Buffet/Moening barrels.
When I got home, my teacher hated the sound of the new barrel, his colleague in the clarinet section agreed; and I'm back to using the stock Buffet barrel. (With a highly evolved approach to the alti!)
Bob Phillips
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Author: GBK
Date: 2009-02-02 20:08
Bob Phillips wrote:
> When I got home, my teacher hated the sound of the new barrel,
> his colleague in the clarinet section agreed; and I'm back to
> using the stock Buffet barrel. (With a highly evolved approach
> to the alti!)
A custom tapered barrel can undoubtedly add "something" to your overall playing, whether it be clarity of certain notes, an evenness of scale and tuning, less/more resistance, etc...
But - don't neglect to remember that the stock Buffet barrel is reamed AT THE SAME TIME as the upper joint.
So as far as "matching" is concerned, it already is.
...GBK (who owns numerous designer barrels, but frequently returns to his stock Buffet barrels)
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Author: Brenda Siewert
Date: 2009-02-02 20:54
It all boils down to taste. What do you like? Or, rather more importantly,
what does your conductor/teacher/director like? Or, your section leader...
then you can look at what do you personally prefer?
I have the Backun barrel/bell combo, but there are times when I use the stock barrel...YIKES...yes, I do. And, there are times I use a composite Muncy barrel. It all depends upon where and with whom I'm playing.
So, play, play,play and listen,listen, listen and then determine what you want to do. I think a good barrel is as essential as a good mouthpiece and so do all my former teachers and current directors/conductors and fellow musicians. So, I use a Backun barrel most of the time. I like it. That's the reason.
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Author: marshall
Date: 2009-02-03 06:42
Go to a vendor's website like Muncy or Weiner and get four or five barrels of the same model out on trial. You'll see how much your barrel can affect your sound.
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Author: Old Geezer
Date: 2009-02-03 14:15
The best idea is to try a lot of them until you find one that suits you.
However...if you find someone who feels he has found a great barrel, do a blindfold test, switch barrels or not and see what happens. Strict blindfold tests are the great leveler and ego smasher!
Still, I really like the colorful woods, beautiful grain, etc. of some these guys machined barrels and bells and am almost tempted. But take it from an old party who has seen them all; it's just another fad and apparently a real money maker.
Clarinet Redux
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Author: MartyMagnini
Date: 2009-02-03 16:31
Old Geezer,
I don't think serious players like Ricardo Morales, Anthony McGill, and many others would fall for just "another fad". These are for real, and they're here to stay. Are they for everyone? Nope. For some - undoubtetdly.
For what it's worth, the Backun barrel and bell I now play passed blindfold tests by the player (me) and my others who didn't know what I was playing - and it passed them all 100%. I did several tests over a few weeks in different venues and ensembles, and the Backun stuff was picked as the favorite every time. Like the others, though - I tried many before I found the ones that suited me - some seemed to make no difference at all, some seemed stuffy, etc. I was lucky to get my bell at the Midwest Clinic a few years ago, so there were dozens to try right there, I took the 2 best with me for extended trials, and only kept 1.
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Author: Alseg
Date: 2009-02-03 19:54
Old Geezer said: "apparently a real money maker."
No. It is NOT.
It is more a labor a love, and a way to converse (often electronically) with other clarinetists.
At least for me...and if I "did the books," I would probably quit making barrels today.
Allan....usual disclaimer about what I do that makes me a gadzillionaire.
Former creator of CUSTOM CLARINET TUNING BARRELS by DR. ALLAN SEGAL
-Where the Sound Matters Most(tm)-
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Author: L. Omar Henderson
Date: 2009-02-04 02:07
Just my 2 cents worth - I do not sell barrels - yet
I think from my own experience and in talking with several custom barrel makers that most agree that the art of the taper is the most important factor in barrel function but that in general different materials - wood types, plastics, or hard rubber -do have definite sound characteristics. Many custom barrels can help make a difference in intonation characteristics and flaws in the acoustics of a particular clarinet but also must interact with the player in the total playing experience and sound produced.
Each barrel is different, even when using a relatively homogeneous material like plastic or hard rubber, and even when the taper is machined by precise CNC machining. Therefore it is wise to try a number of them and get the opinions of others that you trust to give you their observations about what difference, if any, the new barrel makes.
Many also forget the total overhead, R & D and advertising costs, operating costs, time and expense of employees effort or the maker that go into making a custom product. As I tell my children - the cost of fixing the car has little to do with the actual cost of the part!
L. Omar Henderson
www.doctorsprod.com
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Author: Old Geezer
Date: 2009-02-21 15:21
Ricardo has gone through a whole raft of equipment and clarinets and always sounds the same...terrific!
Remember when he used to play a Receital? I think for a brief time he was a Selmer advocate.
Clarinet Redux
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