Tag: Queen vs minor pieces

NPR’s Radiolab Chats with Frank Brady

November 15th, 2011 · · -, Annotated Games, Games, Indian Defences No comments - Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

A friend of mine sent me a link to an episode of Radiolab about “games,” and a ten minute portion of the show is about chess and the concept of the theoretical novelty. Naturally, the show is made by non-chess players, and so their version of the novelty is a bit…. let’s say abstract and philosophical. In any case, it’s an interesting show. Listen to it here. It’s from Aug. 23rd, so if you’re a regular Radiolab listener you’ve likely already heard it, but if you’re not familiar with the show this might be a good introduction. My favorite part of the show was the host’s description of the Marshall Chess Club: spot. on.

In the show, Frank Brady discuses Fischer’s famous game of the century. In the office at the Marshall Chess Club, there is a large poster of the orignal scoresheet from that game that I stare at blankly occasionally, trying to wrap my mind around what it must have been like to play a move like 17…Be6.

I don’t think I’ve ever put this game up on the blog before…so I suppose I should have it up here somewhere. (Notes from Chessgames.com)

Listening to Radiolab reminded me that I hadn’t listened to the Full English Breakfast in a while. This show, their 14th, is their one year anniversary and in it they cover some great stuff in their usual snarky tone. You can hear it here.

A Gorgeous Queen’s Indian Game

November 4th, 2011 · · -, Games, Indian Defences, New York Chess, Queens Indian No comments - Tags: , , , , , , ,

As many of the readers of this blog know, i spend an awful lot of time at the Marshall Chess Club, and so I was thrilled to see this video on the USCF’s website in which some of our regular players talk about the club. In the video, the manager of the club says that the Marshall Chess Club is one of the most famous chess clubs in the country. However, this is a bit of an understatement, as it is actually one of the most famous chess clubs in the world!

To wit, a tourist from Sweden who was in New York on business recently stopped by the club to check out the hallowed halls where Fischer did battle as a teenager. His name was Jan Lundin, and he has recently achieved his first GM norm and was nice enough to share the game with me which proved decisive for his norm result. I thought I would share this gem with you.

In the game, the Grandmaster playing white against Lundin was angling for a win, and played a sharp gambit to try and create complications. However, black found a way to give up his queen for a decisive amount of material and handled the technical ending that resulted with aplomb. In particular, the King march which begins with 53…Kc5 is an impressive and bold plan.