Zoom, Fobes, and Buffet Clarinet Barrel - Play Test & Review!
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- Опубликовано: 21 фев 2021
- You deserve a fantastic clarinet barrel that makes you sound like a nightingale and feel like rock star! What should you be looking for in a good clarinet barrel? Listen to a Zoom, Clark Fobes, and Buffet barrel side-by-side.
0:20 What to look for in a clarinet barrel
2:50 play test, faster higher excerpt
3:58 play test, lower slower excerpt
6:43 Queen Reed Review
Who is Queen Reed?
Queen Reed is just a name that sounded good to me once when I was signing up for something musicky and didn't want to provide my real name. I am obviously not a queen. There is nothing I claim to rule, especially not reeds! And this rather presumptive title is at firm odds with the view I hold of myself as a performer, educator, creator, advocate, and occasionally (we've all been there), a complete imposter.
You, Me, We, have all had life and music experiences that help others when we share them. Along my way here, I have picked up a good deal about playing and teaching the barkystick we call the Clarinet. And when I zoom around the internet for help, advice, insight, I want the most specific, articulate help I can find. So this is what I offer - not only what works for me, but whenever I can figure it out, why and how I think it works.
Quite simply, Queen Reed wants to share everything she knows about playing, learning, and teaching clarinet with the hope that it will make your life easier, help you feel connected to others, build your knowledge - which is power, and enable you to get more and more joy out of your own barkystick.
I find that the clarinetist/musician is the one that hears and feels the major difference in equipment. And that might make you play "better" or more comfortably. I think 95% of listeners hear no difference between brands or quality of clarinets, barrels, mouthpieces, reeds, ligatures. But it's always fun to do these trials.......
I love the point you make here - there is so so much that we feel and notice as players that is not noticeable to the audience. I love it when I find equipment that makes me feel like there are no obstacles between what I want to do and what I can do. I think, as you beautifully point out, that the audience can tell when we are fighting/struggling versus feeling free and musical.
also -- Maybe I should try a good microphone so the audience would have a better change of hearing differences! LOL
I think 99 per cent
Even profesional clarinet players.
To my ears the stock Buffet barrel has the most ring to it and the Fobes the most resistance and maybe a bit more focused sound. Zoom barrel is somewhere between.
It's so interesting to see what others hear! Thanks for weighing in. The sounds we get through the bones in our face as we play also modify what we think we are hearing. Outside ears are crucial when picking equipment.
The Fobes barrel sounded by far the best!
There's a lot to like about the Fobes! Thanks for weighing in!
I think I agree..
i agree
Thanks for sharing, easy pick: the stock sounds dead and really spread out (hence out of tune), the Fobes is well in tune but kinda without soul and the zoom puts your sound right where it should be : centered. Play around with other mouthpieces for tuning issues, also the bell. Cheers!
Thanks for the input! Interesting-- I was using the Fobes as my go-to, and just recently switched over to the zoom!
Fobes had the most homogeneous characteristics and intonation. Of course it’s up to you about the response and resistance. The zoom seemed a bit “flexier “ even w/o having to click it.
Yeah I love that about the Fobes! I like your description of the Zoom -- Flexier. Definitely.
Which barrel do you recommend for a Yamaha 255 B flat clarinet? I wanted to get a Clark fobes one before. Then one instructor told me to wait on it.
Great question. I wouldn't recommend a specific barrel for you without hearing you first :) But I will tell you that a nice barrel can make a clarinet sound/play a lot better - especially paired with a nice mouthpiece. That said, I do really like the Yamaha 255's in general - they get a full big sound and the keywork is pretty durable. If you want to try a Fobes, I say go for it! - especially if you don't mind the hassle of trying and then returning if you decide you don't love it after all. I played a Fobes barrel for years, and then I got a new clarinet. It doesn't pair as well with the new clarinet as it did with the old one, but it is still great. In the past I have also had great results with a Chadash and a Moenig. I encourage you to experiment, explore, see what YOU like and what feels right to you. The biggest obstacles to trying barrels (or any equipment) it seems to me are time and money. It takes time to experiment with different barrels, and it costs money to ship them back if you don't buy any. Happy exploring! & keep us updated!
👍🏻
Do you use the synthetic Fobes barrel or the wooden one
Wooden one -- I've had it for at least 10 years!
You sound great! Is that a Buffet R13 Prestige? And which Fobes barrel was that? Thanks!
Thanks so much! Glad you like. Yes it's a Buffet R13 Prestige which I got from Lisa Canning's Clarinet Shop. And the Fobes barrel is one I've had for years and years - maybe 10 or slightly more - it's his standard Blackwood Bb barrel. I'm back to using it now regularly because up close it reduces fuzzy sounds on every reed I use and it plays much better in tune for me!
@@queenreed373 great Instrument, i play also R13 Prestige.... perfect sound and easy to play all registers in tune....
@@stephanmohler6022 Buffet has a new XXI - goes to low Eb!!
What is the Fast excerpt called?
I can't remember! And I should have mentioned it in the video to begin with. I think it's in A minor, and I probably grabbed something close by which means any etude or solo from clarinet lit, flute lit, or sax lit! Community -- can you help out?
Would you say the Fobes barrel is more resistant or free blowing? Do you know anything about the bore size, larger or smaller?
For me Fobes is 100% freer blowing. The Buffet is most resistant for me and the zoom is right in between. I'm not certain off hand what the bore sizes are -- and I suspect that is proprietary info that perhaps companies like to keep to themselves. BUT, I know that with the right tools, one can measure the bores -- and look for tiny differences in taper throughout (they aren't just a perfect cylindrical shaft from top to bottom of barrel). Also, you can always peer inside the clarinet, through both the top and bottom of the horn, to see if there are any "shelves" where the barrel is either narrower or wider than the top joint. Different models of clarinets may produce bigger or smaller shelves with different barrels. With the free-blowing nature of the Fobes, I personally lose a little focus and depth up high. For me, it's always a set of compromises -- free blowing, ease of play means I have to work harder on tone quality in certain areas.
@@queenreed373 thanks for the detailed response. Helps a lot. Have you tried any Backun barrels? Curious to how they compare to Fobes.
@@shutup_m8468 Yes I have a couple of Backun barrels -- There's a lot to like -- they can even out the sound among registers really nicely, and are usually very free blowing, but for me they get a little "tubby" sounding -- like not enough woody richness. That's another compromise I find happens a lot with equipment -- whenever I am trying to optimize even sound across the range, it comes at the expense of richness and depth. . .so that the sound almost takes on a "plastic" or "toy" sound.
@@queenreed373 I’m deciding between a Fobes Cocobolo barrel and a Backun Moba Cocobolo. I’m looking for a nice warm dark sound but with good projection and free blowing. What would you recommend?
@@shutup_m8468 well I do love my Fobes so that's the route I might go, but if you have the means and time, it's always good to play them side by side. Both of those barrels will have a warm, dark sound and good projection -- so test the intonation to break the tie!
I think every thing is in your brain
No in a different barrel.