Backun New Traditional Clarinet Barrel

The Backun New Traditional Clarinet Barrel is available in 2 different woods: Grenadilla & Cocobolo. There are many differing opinions on which is best and even differing opinions on what the wood does to the sound. So here are the personal opinions of Dave Kessler in regards to these woods:

Grenadilla Wood
Grenadilla is the same wood that most clarinets are made out of. Backun uses a premium quality, unstained Grenadilla for the Backun Fatboy clarinet barrel. I find that the Grenadilla will produce a more tonally centered and deeper tone that the audience will hear as darker and richer. Personally, I always prefer the way that customers sound on the Grenadilla as I listen to them. However, the effect of the wood “behind” the clarinet will make the player perceive the Grenadilla as a bit brighter and more focused than the Cocobolo wood.

Cocobolo Wood
Cocobolo is a very dense wood and like the Grenadilla, Backun uses a premium quality, unstained Cocobolo for the Backun Fatboy clarinet barrel. I find that the Cocobolo gives a broader and sweeter tone that is more open that the audience will hear as brighter and lighter. However, the player “behind” the clarinet will generally perceive the Cocobolo as the richer of the two because they are “hearing more” from the clarinet than they do with the Grenadilla.

Kessler & Sons Music offers a 3 day trial / return policy by default on any in stock Backun New Traditional Clarinet Barrel. There are no cleaning fees or restocking fees (assuming that the item is returned in proper condition).

Before we ship any new Backun New Traditional clarinet barrel, we actually inspect the barrel in the shop to ensure proper fit. We own full sets of Backun factory made reamers to check the tenon fits of the barrels. This ensures that the barrel should fit your clarinet. The barrel might be a hair loose compared to your barrel since your cork has likely compressed over time to your barrel. However, you can generally still test the barrel without much issue. If you do have any issues with fit, you can use a Teflon tape (also called Plumber’s tape) to wrap your cork to help provide a more snug fit of the barrel while not impacting the fit of your stock barrel. This Teflon tape can usually be purchased at your local hardware store for a very low cost.

Please read our terms & conditions (link at the bottom of the page) for full details on this policy.