ADOLPHE SAX: BIOGRAPHY - CULTURE VOCABULARY - 2025

Adolphe Sax (1814-1894) was a renowned Belgian-French musical instrument maker and creator of the saxophone. Since his childhood he worked in the workshop of his father Charles Joseph Sax, a maker of wind and brass instruments.

In 1841 he made the first public presentation of the saxophone in Brussels, the following year he moved to Paris and then in 1846 he patented a metal instrument with a single reed, with a conical hole and an octave overdrive, which he baptized with the name saxophone.

Despite making various instruments, it was the saxophone that catapulted him to fame. Adolphe Sax was recognized worldwide for creating a unique instrument and one of the most popular in musical history.

In 1847, such success led him to be appointed professor of saxophone at the Conservatoire Superior de Paris, a position he held until 1870 when he stopped teaching.

Biography

The manufacturer Antoine-Joseph Sax, known as Adolphe Sax, was born on November 6, 1814 in Dinant, Belgium, which at the time was under French rule.

In the musical world, he is known for being the creator of the saxophone and for his ability to design musical instruments from a very young age in the workshop in which his father worked.

He was the son of the musical instrument designer Charles Joseph Sax (1791-1865), who made harps, guitars, and pianos. For this reason, Adolphe Sax inherited a taste for musical instruments.

The surname Sax was well known in the Belgian royalty thanks to Charles-Joseph Sax, who had obtained the exclusivity to be the manufacturer of the instruments used by the Belgian army band, which had been granted by King William I.

Studies

Adolphe Sax began as an apprentice in his father's workshop, where from the age of six he experimented with a wood lathe and began drilling tone holes in the clarinet.

Nine years later, in his teens, Adolphe Sax took clarinet lessons. His obsession with the perfection of sound led him to make improvements in each of the instruments he played.

This is how he began to manufacture his first musical instruments and participated with a clarinet and an ivory flute at the Industrial Exhibition in Brussels.

Adolphe Sax studied clarinet and flute at the Royal Conservatory of Brussels, the most important theatrical and musical school in Belgium, where he materialized his first designs as a professional.

Later, at age 20, he achieved a better version of the 24-key bass clarinet that was considered a success in the industry, as noted by the director of the Paris Opera Orchestra, Francois Antoine Habeneck. The bass clarinet was his first patented instrument.

Paris, consecration of success

In 1942 Sax said goodbye to Belgium disappointed by his participation in the Industrial Exhibition of Brussels, in which the judges did not consider his innovative projects and awarded him the silver medal, which he rejected.

After leaving Belgium, Adolphe Sax established his new workshop in Paris, which was only the beginning of the successes to come. The innovation in his creations continued: together with his father he created new brass and wood instruments, as well as those of intermediate wind. All of these were presented in an exhibition.

His inventions include the saxhorns (a brass instrument), the tromba saxophone and the saxtuba. With the passing of time he continued creating and improving instruments, and in 1842 he performed in Paris a new musical presentation with the saxophone, which caused a musical elixir in the audience.

Birth of the saxophone

Adolphe Sax had already presented a proposal for a saxophone in Belgium in 1841. However, it was in 1842 that his creation was consecrated after making his first audition in Paris with the saxophone.

The audience was amazed at the magnitude of the musical notes. The news of the new instrument created by Sax quickly spread through every corner of France.

The saxophone was well accepted by the music industry and recognized outside the French border for its innovation; received rave reviews from renowned composers, such as the Italian Gioachino Antonio Rossini, who expressed that he had never heard anything so beautiful.

For his part, the Frenchman Louis Hector Berlioz pointed out that there was no other instrument that could be compared. These statements were published in an article referring to the saxophone that was published in the most influential newspaper in Paris, the Journal des Debats.

The good reviews about the sound produced by the saxophone, the success and recognition led the French composer Louis Hector Berlioz to present in 1844 the first masterpiece for the saxophone: the Canto Sagrado sextet. This was played by Adolphe Sax.

The success of the saxophone continued and it was part of the symphony orchestra, the opera, the French military orchestra and was used by great composers, such as George Gershwin, Jules Massenet, Richard Strauss and Georges Bizet, among others.

Patent

His most popular and well-known instrument in the musical world, the saxophone, was patented on June 28, 1846. Thanks to the saxophone, Adolphe Sax's popularity grew and he became a renowned inventor; in addition, in 1857 he was appointed professor of saxophone at the Paris Conversation.

The sound of the saxophone crossed the continents. In 1953 Patrick Gilmore, conductor of the United States, took to the streets of New York the notes produced by the saxophone, which were intoned by the North American military band.

However, as the years went by, the saxophone gradually disappeared from the stage, but its incorporation into the French military bands kept it afloat until the appearance of jazz in the 20th century.

Additional creations

Adolphe Sax also built a new bass clarinet and bassoon, transformed brass instruments, and was interested in percussion instruments such as drums, timpani, and the bass drum.

His inventions not only covered musical instruments: he was also interested in creating a tar apparatus, which was used to clean the environment of public places.

Family life and recognitions

Adolphe Sax maintained a romantic relationship with Louise-Adele Maor and from the fruit of their love they conceived five children; the couple never married. Only his son Adolph-Edouard Sax followed in his footsteps.

Many have been the recognitions of his work: he was honored with a Legion of Honor, he is part of the design of the 200 Belgian franc banknote, and in 2015 Google used his reference to commemorate the 201 anniversary of his birth.

Legal disputes

Despite his relentless success and his exquisite taste for creating new instruments, Sax's career was marred by legal disputes, about the authenticity of his creations and patents on his instruments.

Other manufacturers who opposed Adolphe Sax's ideas tried to revoke their patents. The constant struggle left him bankrupt on several occasions; however, even though he was discredited, Sax was successful in all the lawsuits and won the trials.

Last years

Despite being internationally recognized in the musical world, Sax fell into poverty but continued working on the creation of new inventions.

Illness also knocked on Adolphe Sax's door. From 1853 to 1858 he suffered from lip cancer; however, he managed to defeat it. He died at the age of 79 in Paris, on February 7, 1894.

Saxophone revival in the 20th century

With the birth of jazz in 1920, the name of Adolphe Sax was reborn as the phoenix, the melodies of the saxophone returned to the musical arena and with much more force than in the last century.

The soloists of the time considered that the saxophone was an avant-garde instrument that should be exploited to its maximum expression for its versatility. The saxophone was perfected over the years and numerous composers joined in creating unique musical pieces.

The saxophone was here to stay. The greatest achievement of musicians in the 20th century was when the French classical saxophonist and soloist Marcel Mule developed the modern saxophone and created the musical repertoire of the classical saxophone.

Following in the footsteps of his predecessor, he was a pedagogue and taught saxophone classes at the Conservatorio Superior de Paris, a chair that had been suspended in 1870.

Thanks to the arrival of jazz, the name of Adolphe Sax resurfaced, crossed all borders and achieved its greatest recognition since this character presented the saxophone in Paris in 1842.

Sax's legacy will never die and will transcend in time thanks to his dedication, dedication and daring presented in each of the projects of which he was part.

The historical value that the name Adolphe Sax represents in the history of music is transcendental, his skill in creating a unique instrument such as the saxophone and with an impeccable sound without equal will last for many years to come.

References

1. "Adolphe Sax Biography - Childhood, Life Achievements & Timeline" in The famous people. Retrieved on September 15, 2018 from The famous people: thefamouspeople.com
2. Franklin Stover "Adolphe Sax Artist Biography" on All Music. Retrieved on September 15, 2018 from All Music: allmusic.com
3. Belgian "Adolphe Sax Inventor" in Britannica. Retrieved on September 15, 2018 from Britannica: britannica.com
4. "The sound that was born with Adolphe Sax" (November 6, 2015) on ABC. Retrieved on September 15, 2018 from ABC: ABC.com
5. "Adolphe Sax" in Wikipedia. Retrieved on September 15, 2018 from Wikipedia: es.wikipedia.org
6. "Adolphe Sax" in Biographies and Lives. Retrieved on September 15, 2018 from Biographies and Lives: biografiasyvidas.com
7. "Adolphe Sax" in Encyclopedia. Retrieved on September 15, 2018 from Encyclopedia: encyclopedia.com
8. Miguel Asensio "The birth of the saxophone" in Adolphesax. Retrieved on September 15, 2018 from Adolphesax: adolphesax.com