For these mouthpieces, Morrie Backun worked with world-renowned clarinetists to produce mouthpieces that are, I would presume, similar to the mouthpieces they personally play all the time.
Currently there are five different mouthpeices available in the Signature clarinet series, Corrado Giuffredi, Richard Hawkins, Anthony McGill, David Shifrin, and a hybrid "Euro" mouthpiece that Richard Hawkins developed after spending time with European clarinetists.
Five great mouthpieces. MAN are they different from one another. I'll explain.
The Euro is the most open mouthpiece of the bunch (1.3mm) with a super-long facing. Monster mouthpiece, but interestingly I find that I need harder reeds with this one compared to the Giuffredi (below). If Vandoren made a mouthpiece this big, they'd probably call it the B49.
The Giuffredi mouthpiece is open (1.2mm) and also quite long, so it's free-blowing and flexible. It feels very similar to my Vandoren BD7.
Both the Euro and Giuffredi mouthpieces have a lot of freedom, but with that freedom comes responsibility—if you can't control a wide open mouthpiece, you will struggle with this. If you can control it, each comes with a million colors in its palette. You'll want to pair them with a Vandoren 2.5-3 reed, tops. Otherwise it'll feel like your reed is made of plywood.
Next up, the McGill mouthpiece. It's got a medium-open tip (1.15mm) with a medium-long facing, and while it's still big and open, it's definitely more controllable than the Giuffredi. It has an "A-frame" bore, which contributes to its unique sound and feel. It's a gorgeous mouthpiece and really flexible. A Vandoren 3 or 3.5 is a great pairing with this mouthpiece.
The Hawkins (Fun fact: McGill's clarinet teacher in High School) is medium, with a 1.08mm tip opening and a medium facing. It also has an A-frame bore. I find that I need a 3.5 or 3.5+ reed on this mouthpiece.
The Shifrin is super closed with a 1.04mm tip and a medium-long facing. It's got a great compact sound, and is suitable for chamber music and orchestral playing. You'll want to pair this with a harder (Vandoren #4-5) reed to get the best out of it. Lots, and lots of ring in this mouthpiece with the right setup.
I recommend purchasing individual reeds to try these mouthpieces. It's always better to use a new reed that matches the mouthpiece than to try a current reed with a new mouthpiece. You don't get a sense of the mouthpiece that way, because your reed is "used" to your current mouthpiece. By the way, if you are fond of synthetic, just use 1/4 to 1/2 strength softer reed than what you'd use for cane.
Finally, please have a look at my Trial Policy for details on Backun mouthpiece trials.
