| The alto saxophone is by far the most popular of these conical-bored, woodwind instruments. Saxophones are usually made of brass and played with a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. The saxophone was invented by the Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax in 1840. Sax wanted to create an instrument that would bridge the vacant middle ground between the brass and the woodwind families. He patented his saxophone on June 24, 1846 as two sets of 14 instruments. |
