Adolphe: Sax

: Receiving serious burns from a gunpowder explosion and accidentally falling onto a hot stove. Near Drowning : Almost drowning in a river. The Invention: Bridging Two Worlds

A feature on (1814–1894) is essentially a study in resilience; it is the story of a man nicknamed "the ghost" who survived nearly a dozen brushes with death to invent an instrument that defined 20th-century music. The Man Who Wouldn't Die adolphe sax

: Drinking a bowl of vitriol (acidic water) he mistook for milk. : Receiving serious burns from a gunpowder explosion

The story behind the origins of the saxophone - Yamaha Corporation The Man Who Wouldn't Die : Drinking a

Before he ever touched a workbench, Sax became a legend in his hometown of Dinant, Belgium, for his improbable survival. His neighbors were convinced he was either cursed or protected, as he survived:

Born into a family of instrument makers, Sax was a child prodigy who submitted flutes to competitions by age 15. In the early 1840s, he set out to create an instrument that bridged the gap between (like the clarinet) and brass (like the trumpet).

: Falling three stories and hitting his head on a stone floor.