Marin Marais (31 May 1656, Paris – 15 August 1728, Paris) was a French composer and viol player of the middle Baroque era. He studied composition with Jean-Baptiste Lully, often conducting his operas, and with the master of the bass viol Monsieur de Sainte-Colombe for six months. In 1676 he was hired as a musician to the royal court of Versailles and was successful there, being appointed in 1679 as ordinaire de la chambre du roy pour la viole, a title he kept until 1725.