Author: kdk ★2017
Date: 2019-06-16 22:28
chamberguy wrote:
> What should I listen for, to
> determine whether this Backun barrel is better than my Fobes
> barrel?
Well, to be honest, the Backun barrel will probably be *different* but it won't be *better.* You may like one more than the other, but they're both good barrels made by well-informed craftsmen who are trying to create equipment that conforms to their ideas about what a clarinet should respond and sound like.
The first criterion, obviously, is tuning. Not just whether or not the tuning note you use is in tune with A440 or A441, but how the scale tunes. Some barrels are designed to compensate for known tuning anomalies, sometimes in specific clarinets (Moennig was, probably among other things, trying to compensate for the sharpness in clarion A5-C6 that was expected in Buffets, especially the A clarinets, of his time).
The second criterion is the response. Does one feel stuffier or freer than the other? Which do you prefer?
The third criterion is related to the 2nd, partly because response can affect tone but also because response or "feel" can affect your *perception* of the tone you're producing with each barrel. Since "feel" can be so influential, if it comes down to this criterion, you should probably have someone who is disinterested listen to you play each and tell you what impression the setup makes with each barrel.
The most important consideration apart from those criteria is what you are trying to improve by changing barrels. If you don't have a fairly clear reason for changing from your Fobes - a problem you're trying to solve, you won't have much way of knowing if you've found the solution.
Karl
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