The dynamics of spin waves during their multimode propagation in a magnonic crystal, which is an irregular narrow ferrite waveguide with periodic boundary modulation, has been studied by the method of Mandelstam--Brillouin spectroscopy. The transformation of the mode composition of spin waves propagating in an irregular ferrite waveguide is shown. The space-time dynamics of spin waves and the characteristics of the band gaps of a magnonic crystal are experimentally studied, and the possibility of controlling the frequency-selective properties of such a structure is shown. By excitation of a superposition of even or odd width modes of the ferrite microstructure, it becomes possible to control the position of the band gaps of a magnonic crystal. The results of the experiment agree with the results of micromagnetic modeling of the propagation and transformation of the spectrum of spin waves propagating in a ferromagnetic periodic structure. Keywords: spin waves, magnonics, magnonic crystal, micromagnetic modeling.