unlike most of his other organ preludes and fugues, the prelude and fugue in c major was written when bach was in arnstadt, where he arrived in the summer of 1703. once he arrived in arnstadt in 1703, he immediately fell in love with the neue kirche (now renamed in commemeration to bach to the bachkirche church.) he would secure his job as church organist at the neue kirche a few weeks after playing in the church. it is here where he met his future first wife, maria barbara bach.