Authorised Backun Clarinets Dealer in Perth
Backun is a Canadian maker of clarinets, bass clarinets, barrels, bells and clarinet components, recognised for bringing genuine innovation to clarinet design.
Tempest Music is proud to be the exclusive Backun dealer in Western Australia. We believe Backun produces some of the most impressive clarinets available today, combining innovative acoustical design with excellent intonation, response and ergonomics.
Across the range, from student instruments through to advanced professional and custom clarinets, Backun consistently impresses us with the quality and evenness of its sound, accurate intonation and exceptionally well-designed keywork.
We encourage players to experience these differences for themselves at our Como music store.
About Backun Clarinets
Founded in Canada by clarinet maker Morrie Backun, Backun has developed an international reputation for challenging established approaches to clarinet design.
Rather than simply reproducing traditional designs, Backun continues to explore how changes to the bore, tone holes, keywork and ergonomics can improve the way a clarinet sounds, responds and feels to the player.
This approach extends throughout the Backun range, from student clarinets to custom professional instruments, bass clarinets, barrels and bells.
Backun Design and Innovation
One of the things that most impresses us about Backun is the amount of thought that goes into the acoustical and mechanical design of its instruments.
Bore Design
The internal bore is fundamental to the way a clarinet plays.
Backun’s development of different bore profiles helps create instruments with excellent response, intonation, projection and tonal character.
We particularly notice how evenly Backun clarinets respond across the different registers, helping create a more consistent playing experience throughout the instrument.
Ergonomics and Keywork
Backun has also given considerable attention to key shapes, positioning and mechanism design.
The result is keywork that we find particularly ergonomic and natural under the fingers. This becomes increasingly valuable as a player’s technique develops and the demands placed on the instrument increase.
Tone Holes & Accoustic Design
Careful attention to tone-hole dimensions and placement contributes to the intonation, response and evenness between registers that we find particularly impressive in Backun instruments.
These aren’t simply technical specifications. They contribute directly to how the clarinet feels and sounds when it is played.
Why Choose Tempest Music for Backun Clarinets?
At Tempest Music, we make choosing a Backun clarinet a more personal, hands-on experience. Whether you are a student, advancing player or professional musician, we help you compare your options and find the instrument that feels right for you.
Specialist Backun clarinet knowledge
As WA's exclusive dealers, we understand the differences across Backun’s student, intermediate, professional and custom clarinets, and can help you narrow down the right options for your playing level.
Supporting musicians since 1979
For more than four decades, Tempest Music has helped students, teachers and professional musicians choose instruments with confidence.
Play and compare before you choose
Try suitable Backun models alongside other leading clarinets so you can compare their sound, response, intonation and feel for yourself.
Advice from experienced musicians
Our team provides practical, personalised guidance based on your playing style, experience, goals and budget, rather than specifications alone.
Backun Clarinets For All Musicians
We stock Backun because we genuinely believe in the instruments. Their combination of innovative bore design, excellent intonation, even response, ergonomic keywork and distinctive sound makes Backun an outstanding choice for clarinet players at every level.
Our confidence in the brand is also why we want players to experience Backun for themselves. At Tempest Music, we will assist you to compare suitable Backun instruments with other leading brands within your budget. Through a guided play-testing process, the differences between instruments often become surprisingly clear.
Meet Our Team
Even within the same make and model, individual clarinets can have subtle differences in sound and response. That’s why choosing a Backun at Tempest Music isn’t simply about selecting a model. You can play-test the actual instruments, compare them and select the one that works best for you.
Come in-store and meet our experienced team, who can guide you through the Backun range and help you find the right instrument for your playing style, level and budget.
Fran
Mike
Emily
The Backun clarinet you play-test and choose is the one you take home
As the exclusive Backun dealer in Western Australia, Tempest Music is proud to offer Backun clarinets, bass clarinets, barrels, bells and accessories from our Perth showroom.
Whether you’re choosing a first clarinet, progressing to a more advanced instrument or searching for a professional or custom clarinet, our experienced team can guide you through the Backun range and help you compare suitable instruments.
Come in and play Backun for yourself. Experience the sound, response, intonation and keywork, compare it with other leading clarinets, and discover the instrument that best allows you to create your own sound.
Ready to Find Your Perfect Backun Clarinet?
Contact us to learn more about our range of Backun clarinets and find the right instrument for your playing style, experience and budget. Our experienced team can answer your questions, explain the differences between models and help you compare suitable options before you choose.
FAQ
What will I notice when upgrading to a Backun clarinet?
The most noticeable change is tone. Backun’s MoBa barrel produces a full-bodied, dark sound favoured by orchestral players, with more resistance, focus and easier articulation across the range. Intonation and response also stand out, as models like the Q Series are built for exceptional intonation and response, with forged nickel-silver keywork in silver plating. If you’re stepping up from a beginner clarinet rather than going straight to a professional model, the Protégé bridges that gap, offering uncompromising tone and impeccable intonation through a unique acoustical design. The best way to feel the difference is to compare instruments side by side in our Perth showroom, using your own mouthpiece and reeds.
What are the differences between each Backun clarinet model?
Backun’s range spans an affordable step-up option through to top-tier professional instruments. Here are some of the different ranges:
- Protégé – The next logical step between beginner and Artist models, with uncompromising tone, impeccable intonation and a unique acoustical design.
- Q Series – Built for exceptional intonation and response, with forged nickel-silver keywork in silver plating, combining a carbon fibre middle joint ring with classic grenadilla wood for familiar, French-style playability. Also available as a professional Low C bass clarinet with a nickel-silver neck and bell and refined intonation across the registers.
- MoBa and Lumière – Backun’s higher-tier professional lines, available in grenadilla or cocobolo. Grenadilla gives a slightly harder, more projecting tone, while cocobolo offers a broader, sweeter sound with less edge.
- Alpha – A lightweight, synthetic-body bass clarinet (Low Eb or Low C) built on the same acoustical design as the Q Series, with a hand-finished brass neck and bell. Excellent value for students, schools and experienced players.
As the exclusive Perth dealer, we can bring in any model from Backun’s full range. We recommend you play-test these side by side in our Perth showroom to get a better feel for the best clarinet for you.
How should I be cleaning my Backun clarinet?
Backun’s own care guidance is straightforward: swab the bore and joints after every playing session, making sure to dry the tenon sockets too, and always use a clean swab that’s washed regularly. Wipe down the keywork with a soft, lint-free cloth to remove fingerprints and prevent tarnish, and grease the tenon corks as needed.
Perth’s hot, dry climate makes humidity control especially important for a wooden instrument like this. The wood can dry out and crack more easily here than in more humid parts of Australia, so a humidity control pack in your case and occasional bore oiling go a long way toward protecting it year-round.
Beyond day-to-day care, we recommend a full service by a qualified technician once a year to keep everything playing at its best.
We stock Backun’s official Wood Care Kits, and our team is happy to talk you through the right routine for your instrument.
Are Backun clarinets good for students?
Backun’s approach is particularly impressive at student level. Rather than treating a student clarinet simply as an inexpensive instrument on which to begin learning, Backun incorporates many of the acoustical and ergonomic principles found throughout its range.
In our experience, Backun student clarinets offer superior sound and intonation, a much more even response across the registers and more ergonomic keywork. For a developing musician, these qualities matter. An instrument that responds well and plays consistently allows the student to concentrate on developing their technique, musicianship and sound.
We believe Backun student clarinets set a particularly high standard in their class. We also encourage students to play-test them alongside other quality student clarinets within their budget. The differences are something we would rather let the student experience than simply tell them about.
How long will a student Backun clarinet last before I need to upgrade?
There’s no fixed timeline, as it really depends on how you progress rather than the calendar. That said, because Backun’s Protégé and Alpha models are built around the same acoustical design and keywork as their professional instruments, many players find they can stay on them for longer than a typical starter clarinet before feeling the need to upgrade. Some players comfortably progress through several years of study, including grade exams and ensemble playing, before outgrowing the instrument.
The signs it’s time to consider a step up are usually about you, not the clarinet: you’re consistently pushing the upper register, playing more demanding repertoire, or a teacher suggests your development is being limited by the instrument’s tone or response.
The best way to know where you’re at is to bring your current clarinet into our Perth showroom and play-test it against the next model up. Our team can help you gauge whether it’s genuinely time to upgrade or whether you’ve still got plenty of room to grow on what you have.
Why do two Backun clarinets of the same model sometimes feel different?
This mostly comes down to the natural wood. Backun’s professional models are made from grenadilla or cocobolo, and even within the same wood type, individual pieces vary in density and grain, which subtly affects tone, resistance and feel under the fingers. Hand-finishing adds to this too. Tone holes, bore work and key regulation involve a degree of hand craftsmanship on top of precision machining, so no two instruments come out completely identical, even from the same production run.
This is a normal part of owning a wooden instrument, not a flaw, and it’s exactly why we encourage play-testing more than one example of the same model in our Perth showroom before choosing. At Tempest Music, the instrument you play-test in-store is the one that comes home with you, so trying two or three side by side lets you feel these small differences for yourself and pick the exact instrument that suits your playing.