Antoine-Joseph "Adolphe" Sax (French: [ɑ̃twan ʒɔzɛf adɔlf saks]; 6 November 1814 – 7 February 1894) was a Belgian inventor and musician who created the saxophone in the early 1840s, patenting it in 1846. He also invented the saxotromba, saxhorn and saxtuba. He played the flute and clarinet.