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.
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.
Below are just a few of the most popular Backun clarinets. Please view our Clarinets page for all products.
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.
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
Are Backun Clarinets Good?
Yes. Backun has its origins at the top end of clarinet making, with founder Morrie Backun developing custom clarinets and components for professional players.
What makes Backun particularly interesting is that the acoustic knowledge and advanced design ideas developed for these high-level instruments have influenced the entire Backun range, including its student instruments.
One of the most important developments is Backun’s redesigned bore, which produces remarkable evenness of sound and response across the registers. At Tempest Music, this is one of the qualities we particularly notice when Backun clarinets are played and compared.
Who Is Morrie Backun?
Morrie Backun is the founder and designer behind Backun Musical Services. His work began at the professional end of the clarinet world, developing and refining clarinets and components for demanding players.
His approach has focused heavily on the acoustics of the clarinet, including bore design, tone-hole design, intonation, response and tonal consistency.
Importantly, the knowledge developed through Backun’s professional and custom instruments has not been confined to the top of the range. Many of those design principles have been incorporated throughout the Backun family of clarinets.
What Is Different About the Backun Bore Design?
The bore is the internal shape of the clarinet and it has a major influence on the instrument’s sound, response and intonation.
Morrie Backun and the Backun team have put considerable development into the design of the bore. One of the results is the amazing evenness across the registers that we associate with Backun clarinets.
As the player moves through the chalumeau, clarion and upper registers, the instrument maintains a remarkably consistent character and response. This can make the clarinet feel more unified from bottom to top.
Do Backun Student Clarinets Benefit from Backun's Professional Clarinet Design?
Yes, and we believe this is one of Backun’s greatest strengths.
Morrie Backun’s work began with high-level custom and professional clarinets, but the advanced acoustic thinking developed there has flowed through the entire range.
The Backun Alpha, therefore, isn’t simply a basic student clarinet with the Backun name attached to it. It benefits from the same company’s work on bore design, intonation, response and evenness that has shaped Backun’s professional instruments.
For a beginning player, that matters. A clarinet that responds evenly and predictably allows the student to concentrate on learning rather than fighting inconsistencies in the instrument.
Why Does Tempest Music Recommend the Backun Alpha?
The Backun Alpha is one of our preferred student clarinets because of what we hear and experience when it is actually played.
We particularly like its rich, centred sound, excellent intonation, easy response, comfortable keywork and remarkable evenness across the registers.
It also gives a beginning player access to acoustic design thinking that originated in Morrie Backun’s work at the professional end of clarinet making.
When customers compare quality student clarinets in our showroom, the Alpha consistently impresses us.
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.
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.
