Muffat’s twelve Concerti Grossi were written for court entertainment. The titles given to each of the works in the set are believed to refer to the occasions of the first performance and have no bearing upon the music itself. Muffat’s importance as a composer of the baroque period lies in his extraordinary synthesis of the French and Italian styles, as exemplified by Lully and Corelli. In Muffat’s concertos the first two movements are written in the Italian style, while the remainder consist of dances, reflecting the French courtly influence.