Our Concept

Our concept of how a great mouthpiece should sound, react to your input, and respond is our "guiding force." It keeps us on the right path, moves us forward, keeps us questing for something better than ever! BEHN™ was founded on the goal to recreate the extraordinarily beautiful sounds, and ideal playing characteristics of the world's finest vintage "Golden Era" mouthpieces of the past.

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What is a great mouthpiece?

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• It should celebrate resonance. It should have a sweet and lively sound that is resonant, deep, and beautiful.

• It should combine strength with grace, and depth with focus.

• It should invite you to manipulate color and shape, while always maintaining your sound's tonal center.

• It should invite quick and lively response that is reliable and clear.

• A fine mouthpiece should feel like an extension of your voice. It should freely facilitate your musical concepts into your musical voice.

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Old Mouthpieces

It is our belief that the finest mouthpieces of the past were produced in the pre-war "Golden Era" of the 1920s and 1930s. The rubber from which the best examples were made helped produce a sound that was much more complete with overtones. They had a depth, resonance, and focus that cannot as easily be achieved on modern mouthpieces.

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Best  Rubber, Best Sound

The material from which a mouthpiece is made has great influence over your sound, feel, and response. The center of our mouthpiece concept comes from the material. We believe that with the best hard rubber, you can more easily achieve the best sound.

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Best Design, Best Sound

The resonant potential of the hard rubber is only as good as the mouthpiece's design. A great design should work together with the natural resonance characteristics of the hard rubber to ensure a beautiful sound that is easy to produce.

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Best Reed, Best Sound

A reed's efficient vibration is very important to achieve the full resonance benefits of our proprietary rubber and designs. In an attempt to produce a beautiful sound, we believe many clarinetists use harder reeds than necessary. We recommend that you try our mouthpieces with a thinner-cut, free, and vibrant reed. You may be pleasantly surprised by the results.