Although he was a younger contemporary and colleague of Beethoven, Giuliani followed the more strictly classical principles of Mozart and Haydn. This is illustrated perfectly in his Grand Overture, which consists of a brief, slow, minor-mode introduction followed by a fully developed major-mode sonata-allegro structure. Giuliani himself was a guitar virtuoso, so this piece requires great facility and invites imaginative coloring from the player.

The introduction is quite simple; a gently throbbing ostinato bass note underlies brief passages that initially cascade downward and then rise expectantly. The movement's main matter is built upon good-natured, even bumptious, music that relies heavily on fast passagework and burbling tunes, with some sly partial scales and a couple of crescendos tossed in for humorous effect. Indeed, if this were orchestrated it would be indistinguishable from an opera overture by Giuliani's idol, Rossini.

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