EP 262- IM Kostya Kavutskiy returns

This week Perpetual Chess welcomes back IM Kostya Kavutskiy. Kostya is a respected trainer, a founder of the ChessDojo training platform, a YouTube creator, and a Chessable author. I caught up with Kostya shortly after he returned from the North American Open, so we got the rundown on his own strengths and weaknesses, as well as the U.S. tournament landscape. Since Kostya is a popular online presenter, he received a bunch of listener questions soliciting chess improvement tips. 

Lastly we checked in on Kostya’s content- creation plans, and the “state of the Dojo,” as Kostya discussed visions for the teaching platform that he heads, along with GM Jesse Kraai and IM David Pruess. It is always insightful to talk chess with Kosta! Please read on for timestamps and show notes. 

Click here to download the Episode

Prior Interviews:

Perpetual Chess Episode 4 with IM Kostya Kavutskiy  

Perpetual Chess Episode 89 with IM Kostya Kavutskiy 

How to Chess #20 with IM Kostya Kavutskiy 

0:00- Kostya shares lessons learned from his recent tournament in the North American Open about improving game preparation and execution. You can watch video recaps of all of his rounds here. 

Mentioned: Continental Chess, The Secret Ingredient by GM Jan Markos, GM Andrew Tang, IM Levy Rozman 

19:45- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com. Check out their latest offerings here: 

New Chess Courses Online - For All Levels in all - Chessable.com

Mentioned: IM Levy Rozman’s Tweet 

30:00- Patreon mailbag question: “Where can older players find a coach?”

Mentioned: Lichess coaches page, Chess.com coaches page 

34:00- Patreon mailbag question: “What might the subject of Kostya’s next Chessable course be?” 

Mentioned: How to Chess #20 with IM Kostya Kavutskiy 

37:00-  What is discord? What is Chess Dojo? What is new with Chessdojo?

Mentioned: IM David Pruess, GM Jesse Kraai,  

41:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by AImchess.com.  Aimchess analyzes your online games and provides actionable improvement insights. Check out their updated website, and if you decide to subscribe please use the code “Perpetual30” to save 30%. 

42:00- Patreon mailbag question: “How does Kostya balance his time between ChessDojo and his own chess goals?” 

46:00- Patreon mailbag question “With the growth of the Dojo, what content would you like to see it offer that is currently missing?” 

Mentioned: Link for ChessDoJo Discord here

53:00- What chess advice does Kostya repeat the most often? 

55:00- What chess books does Kostya recommend?

List of his recs here, Top 4 Most Overrated Chess Books Video, Bobby Fischer Teaches Chess, My System, How to Reassess Your Chess, Dvoretsky’s Endgame Manual 

1:05:00- Kostya’s has other interests outside of chess. We talk about them here. 

EP 261- "Master to IM" Adult Improver Special with FM Doug Eckert, NM Evan Rosenberg and FM Dalton Perrine

FM Doug Eckert, NM Evan Rosenberg, FM Dalton Perrine, and myself

Perpetual Chess is back with another adult improver multi-guest “special edition.” This episode is called, “Master to IM” and continues the series started in Episode 217 (IM to GM). As the title suggests, we feature Master-level players who are training and competing with the hope of earning the FIDE International Master title (IM.) Our three guests are FM Doug Eckert, NM Evan Rosenberg, and FM Dalton Perrine. Each interview is entertaining and insightful in its own way. Our guests discuss questions like, “What chess skills differentiate a Master from an IM?” and “Why are our 3 guests willing to sacrifice so much time and money to play competitive chess in order to earn this title?” And, of course, they share many details about their regimens for training and competing.. Please read on for more details and timestamps!

Click here to download the Episode

0:00- Intro

Mentioned: Check out the new dedicated Perpetual Chess Adult Improver page here, and the Spotify Adult Improver Playlist here 

4:30- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by AImchess.com. Aimchess analyzes your online games and provides actionable improvement insights. Check out their updated website, and if you decide to subscribe please use the code “Perpetual30” to save 30%. 

5:00- FM Doug Eckert joins the show! Doug is a 57 year-old retired CPA, dad, and is a board member of the St. Louis Chess Club. 

Mentioned: GM Patrick Wolff, GM Maxim Dlugy, GM Jacob Aagaard’s Killer Chess Training, Episode 241 with FM Peter Giannatos, Charlotte Winter Invitational Results here, Reykjavik Open 2022 

35:30- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com. Check out their latest offerings here.  

36:30- NM Evan Rosenberg joins the show! Evan is a 38 year-old lawyer, dad, and chess trainer, with a Masters in Education. 

Mentioned: Dojo All Stars: Evan Rosenberg, FM Sunil Weerumantry, Info for the Norm tournament that Evan and Levy Rozman will be playing in is here: http://nycchessnorms.com/players/, Evan Rosenberg-Dominique Myers 2021, How to Chess with GM Eugene Perelshteyn, Abdusattorov-Carlsen 2021 

52:00- New sponsored segment! Evan and I discuss  Chess.com insights, which is one of many features available with a diamond level Chess.com membership that highlights your strengths and weaknesses based on your games. It also tests you on any missed tactics. Diamond level membership also gets you full access to Chess.com’s huge video library. Whatever membership level of Chess.com you choose, you can help support the pod by signing up using this link. 

1:21:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessvis.com. Chessvis is an educational chess app which helps you train your visualization skills. You can check out their website, or search for the app on Android or Iphone. 

1:23:00- FM Dalton Perrine joins the show! Dalton is a 28 year- old chess trainer and the author of the Chessable course, Survive and Thrive: How to Blunder Less and Defend Better. 

Mentioned: Episode 8 with GM Sam Shankland, Episode 217 IM to GM Episode , How to Chess with FM Dalton Perrine, Recognizing Your Opponent’s Resources by IM Mark Dvoretsky , GM Jacob Aagaard’s Grandmaster Preparation Series and Excelling at Chess Series, Kasparov’s My Great Predecessors Series, GM Johan Hellsten’s books, Strategic Chess Exercises, Critical Moments 

1:55:00- 

Thanks so much to our guests for joining the pod! Here are the chess.com accounts at which you can reach them:

Chess.com accounts: 

FM Doug Eckert 

NM Evan Rosenberg

FM Dalton Perrine

Twitter:

Evan Rosenberg

Dalton Perrine

Dalton’s Website:

https://nextlevelchesscoaching.com/

 Email Dalton at NextLevelChessCoaching at gmail.com

Dalton's Course:

Survive and Thrive: How to Blunder Less and Defend Better.

If you would like to help support Perpetual Chess, you can do so here:

Ben Johnson is creating Perpetual Chess Podcast | Patreon

Book Recap #22- Discussing Questions of Modern Chess Theory with Martin Justesen

Perpetual Chess is back with an edition of Chess Books Recaptured, a recurring book review podcast. Today I am joined by Martin Justesen to discuss the underrated Soviet-era classic Questions of Modern Chess Theory, by Isaac Lipnitsky. Originally published in 1956 in the Soviet Union, it was not translated and published in English until Quality Chess did it in 2006. And the chess world is quite lucky that it was translated! As usual we share historical details, lessons learned from the book and a few favorite segments in our discussion. Of course we also get into some of the details of Isaac Lipnitsky’s life, as well as discussing what is new with our returning guest-co-host, Martin. Please read on for more details and timestamps. 

Click here to download the Episode

Martin's prior Adult Improver Interview: Episode 209

0:00- Why did Martin choose this book? What makes it noteworthy? 

Mentioned: Book Recap #18- Nimzowitsch’s My System, Endgame by Frank Brady 

8:30- For what level chess player is this book most helpful? 

Mentioned: Logical Chess Move by Move, Winning Chess Strategies, Simple Chess 

12:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by AImchess.com. Aimchess analyzes your online games and provides actionable improvement insights. Check out their updated website, and if you decide to subscribe please use the code “Perpetual30” to save 30%. 

13:30- We discuss the formats in which the book is available. We couldn’t find much beyond the paper book format. 

17:00- Who was Isaac Lipnitsky? 

19:00- Why is this book sometimes compared to IM John Watson’s Secrets of Modern Chess Strategy?

Mentioned: Lipnitsky-Petrosian 1950, Episode 258 With GM Matthew Sadler, Translator John Sugden 

28:30- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com. Check out their latest offerings here: 

New Chess Courses Online - For All Levels - Chessable.com

29:30- What were the most noteworthy segments of the book? 

Mentioned: Anderson-Kieseritzky, Botvinnik-Capablanca 1938, Steinitz-Von Bardeleben 1895  

46:00- Thanks so much to Martin for joining the show

Check out all of Martin’s Books Here: 

Amazon.com: Martin B. Justesen: Books, Biography, Blog, Audiobooks, Kindle

Also Mentioned: Street Smart Chess, Improve Your Chess Now 

Sign up for Martin’s newsletter here.

This month we will make another donation to Chess in Slums. 

Donate here: https://www.gofundme.com/f/chess-education-in-africa?utm_source=customer&utm_medium=copy_link_all&utm_campaign=m_pd+share-sheet

Listen to my Interview with Tunde Onakoye on Episode 219

54:00- This month's blindfold puzzles are straight from Martin's new book, Blindfold Opening Visualization

Puzzle #1, White to move - 1. E4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 d6 4. Nc3 Ne7 5. Nd5 g6??

Puzzle #2, White to move- 1. Nf3 d5 2. G3 c5 3. Bg2 Nc6 4. D4 e6 5. 00 Nf6 6. C4 dxc4 7. Ne5 Nxd4?

You can find a Lichess study with the answers to both puzzles here:

https://lichess.org/study/ZYkBctm8/gXF6JORT

If you would like to help support Perpetual Chess, you can do so here.

EP 260- IM Christof Sielecki is back!

This week’s guest on Perpetual Chess marks the return of award winning author, Chessable author, and noted opening theoretician, IM Christof Sielecki. Christof has recently released, Keep it Simple: Black, an ambitious course which provides solid opening lines against every possible White first move. We discuss the ways that Christof’s process for creating Chessable courses, using engines, and choosing opening lines has evolved over the years. Of course, there was quite a bit of chess news in the form of the FIDE World Rapid and Blitz, so we also spent some time discussing this tournament, its standout performances, and its many attendant controversies. Lastly, Christof always has a few fun stories to share, and this interview was no exception, as he shared some details about the process behind helping to create The Magnus Touch with Magnus and his team. As always, you can read on for more details and show notes below. 

Click here to download the Episode

Prior interviews with IM Christof Sielecki: 

Episode 6

Episode 153

Book Recap 18- My System 

0:00- FIDE World Rapid and Blitz Recap and discussion

Mentioned: Dude fell from his chair!, GM Magnus Carlsen-GM Nodiberk Abdusattorov Blitz game 

26:15- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com. You can check out IM Christof Sielecki’s courses, including free “Short and Sweet” previews of his new course here. 

27:30- How did Christof decide which openings to include in “Keep it Simple Black?” 

Mentioned: Lifetime Repertoires: Pirc Defense, Lifetime Repertoires: Caro-Kann, Lifetime Repertoires: Nimzo-Ragozin 

44:00- How has Christof’s engine use evolved when designing courses? 

Mentioned: Chessify Cloud Engine Rental 

49:30- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by AImchess.com.  Aimchess analyses your online games and provides actionable improvement insights. Check out their updated website, and if you decide to subscribe please use the code “Perpetual30” to save 30%. 

51:00- Christof tells the story of meeting and working with GM Magnus Carlsen and family in conjunction with Magnus’ course The Magnus Touch. 

1:02:00- What will Christof be working on next? 

Mentioned: Episode 257 with GM Erwin L’Ami 

1:05:00- Patreon mailbag question: What role should openings and Chessable opening courses play for amateur club-level players? 

1:17:00- Thanks so much to Christof for rejoining us! Here are links to keep up with him:

Keep it Simple Black is ON SALE now. Get it here:

Keep It Simple For Black - MoveTrainer™ Course - Chessable.com

Short and sweet free previews here and here 

Follow Christof on Twitter here:

https://twitter.com/ChessExplained

EP 259- Ben Johnson

On this holiday week, with The Perpetual Chess Podcast having recently turned 5 years old, it seemed like an appropriate time to feature myself as “the guest” on Perpetual Chess. In order to help out, I brought in longtime listener of the pod, chess journalist and improver, Chris Wainscott, to perform hosting duties. Chris and I covered lots of ground, as he asked me about the origins of Perpetual Chess, its growth over the years, my approach to interviewing people, favorite interview types and “dream guests.” He asked probing questions about  my own chess origins and improvement efforts. Although I do prefer being the interviewer rather than the interviewed, it was fun to play the other role and to answer so many good listener questions. Details and show notes are below. 

Click here to download the Episode

0:00-    My chess background, and when did chess initially captivate me?

15:00-  There are always great new courses from Chessable including FM Kamil Plichta’s Lifetime Repertoires: Accelerated Dragon. Check out what else is new here:

https://www.chessable.com/courses/all/new/

16:00- Patreon mailbag question:’When will GM Yasser Seirawan be on the show?” 

Mentioned: EP 134 with Megan Chen

19:00- Patreon mailbag question: “How did Perpetual Chess come to be?” 

23:00- Patreon mailbag question: ‘To what do you attribute the podcast’s success?”

25:00- Patreon mailbag question: “What do you wish you had  known at the beginning? Any regrets?”

26:00- Patreon mailbag question: “ How has your  interviewing style/approach evolved?” 

31:00- Patreon mailbag question: “What do you consider to be the highlights of the show?” 

35:00- Twitter question:  “Which handful of episodes are most representative of Perpetual Chess?” 

Mentioned: Ep. 193 Tom Murphy, EP 250- FM Asa Hoffmann, EP. 76 Andrez Kryzdwa, GM Jan Timman, EP 15 GM Alex Yermolinksky. plus I forgot to mention my favorite episode, a World Championship prep oral history with GM Peter Heine Nielsen

40:00- Twitter question: “When will you do a Chessable course?’

42:00- Twitter question: “What are the most challenging types of interviews? What are your favorite non-chess podcasts?” 

Rights to Ricky Sanchez, Animal Spirits Podcast, WTF with Marc Maron, Fresh Air, The Ezra Klein show, Death, Sex and Money 

46:00-  Patreon mailbag question: “What is your work flow/chess study regimen like in a given week?”

50:00- What value does my producer, Mathew Passy bring to the podcast?  

52:00- Perpetual Chess is also brought to you in part by AImchess.com. Check out the site, and if you decide to subscribe use the code Perpetual30 to save 30%. 

53:00- Patreon mailbag question: “How has your approach to chess studying changed over the years?” 

Mentioned: Greg and Jen Shahade, GM Maurice Ashley 

58:00- Patreon mailbag question: “What are your own favorite training tools? What guests’ advice resonated with you?” 

Mentioned: Neal Bruce, GM Jacob Aagaard, Thinking Inside the Box, GM Jan Gustafsson 

1:03:00- When it comes to competitive chess? What is my “why? 

Mentioned: GM Jonathan Rowson’s The Moves that Matter 

1:07:00- What are my goals in OTB chess?

Mentioned: Episode 241 with FM Peter Giannatos, Episode 232 with James Altucher 

1:10:00- Patreon mailbag question: What are my favorite learning tools? 

Mentioned: Episode 257 with GM Erwin L’Ami 

1:13:00- How has life changed since Queen’s Gambit? 

1:16:00- My evolving philosophy for choosing Adult Improver guests 

Mentioned: Episode 256 with Alex Crompton 

1:19:00- Who are my “dream guests?” 

Mentioned: Lazslo Polgar, Magnus’ Bullet Twitch Stream, GM Ljubomir Ljubojevic, GM Ulf Andersson 

1:25:00- Thanks so much to Chris for guest co-hosting!

 You can read his blog and book reviews here:

http://ontheroadtochessmaster.com/

And follow him on Twitter here: 

https://twitter.com/cwainscottmke

EP 258- GM Matthew Sadler

Photo Courtesy of New in Chess Magazine

This week’s guest on Perpetual Chess is 2 time British champion, and award winning author, GM Matthew Sadler.  Matthew has been one of Great Britain’s top players for decades and is currently ranked #41 in the world. He has impressively managed to maintain his form well into his 40s while working outside of chess. Matthew has also made quite a mark as an author. His books,Gamechanger and the adult improver focused, Chess for Life, both co-authored with WIM Natasha Regan, are both favorites of this podcast. You can hear us discuss these books in Episode 112. In Matthew’s new book, The Silicon Road to Chess Improvement, Matthew goes beyond just Alphazero and extracts lessons for humans from many of the other modern chess super engines. He is also the regular book reviewer for NIC magazine, and did game recaps of the 2021 FIDE World Championship with none other than GM Garry Kasparov! I am happy to report that Matthew was very generous with his time, so we managed to cover all of these areas of chess interest in our conversation. Timestamps and relevant links are below. 

Click here to Download the Episode

0:00- As a full time IT professional, author, New in Chess book reviewer, content creator and top player, how does Matthew get so many things done? 

04:45- What are some of Matthew’s favorite recent chess books?

Mentioned: Winning by GM Nigel Short , The Creative Power of Boguljubov, The Unstoppable American 

10:00- We segue into discussing what Matthew observed from Magnus’ play in the World Championship. 

Mentioned: Silicon Road to Chess Improvement YouTube Channel, Chessbase India video with GM Peter Heine Nielsen, More Info on the TCEC- Top Engine Chess Championship, The Games discussed can be seen here 

24:00- What can club players learn from super engines? 

Mentioned: Small Steps to Giant Improvement

31:00- Does Matthew see an engine footprint in GM Alireza Firouzja’s play?

Mentioned: Erdos-Firouzja 2021, Acquisition of Chess Knowledge in Alpha Zero 

36:00- Patreon mailbag question: “Did Alphazero’s opening acquisition trace the path of the evolution of chess?”

38:00- There are always great new courses from Chessable including FM Kamil Plichta’s Lifetime Repertoires: Accelerated Dragon. Check out what else is new here:

https://www.chessable.com/courses/all/new/

40:00- Why does it seem like the numerical evaluations of engines are getting more extreme, i.e. “+5 in an even position?” 

45:00- Patreon mailbag question: “Do engines still threaten to end competitive chess as was often reported circa Kasparov-Deep Blue, or are they accepted as a supplemental tool these days?”

Mentioned: GM Pia Cramling, GM Juan Bellon, GM Robin van Kampen 

50:00- What are Matthew’s thoughts on Magnus’ recent mention of potentially dropping out of the World Championship cycle?  

55:00- Perpetual Chess is also brought to you in part by AImchess.com. Check out the site, and if you decide to subscribe use the code Perpetual30 to save 30%. 

57:00- Patreon mailbag question “If chess is fundamentally a draw, why do top engines still sometimes beat each other? 

1:00:00-  Patreon mailbag question;  “Will engine play become more “human” in the future?’ This segues to a conversation about Magnus’ uncanny ability to play mistake-free chess.  

Mentioned: Maia bots on Lichess, Topalov interview with Chess24

1:09:00- How did the opportunity come about for Matthew to do World Championship recap videos with Garry Kasparov on Kasparovchess? What did he learn from Kasparov?

1:15:00- Patreon mailbag question: “Does correspondence chess have a future given the preponderance of draws?’  We also touch on whether the rating strength of engines is slowing down. 

1:22:00- Patreon mailbag question: “Are there engines that are more instructive about how to convert advantages in a “human” way that avoids complications?” 

1:28:00- Patreon mailbag question: “What chess improvement and maintenance tips can Matthew share for other adults in their 40s and beyond? “

1:38:00- Patreon mailbag question: “The Carlsbad structure features in 3 of Matthew’s books. Why does it fascinate him so much?”

1:41:00- Thanks so much to Matthew for being so generous with his time and sharing his knowledge. Here are the links to keep up with his content. 

Twitter

Silicon Road to Chess Improvement YouTube Channel

Buy the Book here

Or The E Book from New in Chess here 

Chess for Life

Gamechanger 

EP 257- GM Erwin L'Ami with a World Championship Wrap Up (and more!)

Photo courtesy of GM Erwin L’Ami

Perpetual Chess is back for one more World Championship wrap-up (among other topics) with top Dutch player, trainer, and popular Chessable author, GM Erwin L’Ami. As the second to GM Anish Giri, and a former member of GM Veselin Topalov’s World Championship team, Erwin shares his general reflections on the Carlsen-Nepomniatchtchi match, as well as lots of insights about the opening choices of each player. We also talk about chess improvement. Erwin himself is gearing up to compete in the prestigious Tata Steel tournament in Wijk an Zee after a long layoff from OTB chess. He also answers some listener questions relating to how amateurs should approach openings. Lastly, I was quite interested to hear how chess engines and opening theory have changed, even in the time since Erwin last was a guest on Perpetual Chess, in 2020. There is always lots to learn from GM L’Ami, so please enjoy the conversation, and check out the relevant links and timestamps below if needed. 

Click here to Download the Episode

Prior Perpetual Chess interview: Episode 186 with GM Erwin L’Ami 

0:00- Erwin shares his thoughts about the World Championship, especially the openings chosen. 

Mentioned: The games we discuss can be viewed here, Chessbase India interview with GM Peter Heine Nielsen and GM Vladimir Potkin, Sesse Engine 

30:00- There are always great new courses from Chessable including FM Kamil Plichta’s Lifetime Repertoires: Accelerated Dragon. Check out what else is new here:

https://www.chessable.com/courses/all/new/

30:30- Perpetual Chess is also brought to you in part by AImchess.com. Check out the site, and if you decide to subscribe use the code Perpetual30 to save 30%. 

31:30- How is Erwin preparing for the Challenger’s group of the upcoming Tata Steel Chess Tournament? 

Mentioned: More on the Dubov-Karjakin issue here. Perpetual Chess W.C. Pod with GM Jan Timman,  

44:00- How does Erwin work on his tactics? 

Mentioned: The Silicon Road to Chess Improvement, FM Frank Erwich’s 1001 Chess Exercises for Advanced Club Players

Silicon Road YouTube Channel, Kasparovchess World Championship Game Recaps 

49:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessmood.com. They offer a huge video library with instruction on every phase of the game. 

50:00- Patreon mailbag question: “Is 1. e4 still ‘best by test’?” 

Mentioned: Carlsen-Tari 2021 

55:00- Patreon mailbag question: Have super-engines recently refuted any openings? 

57:00- Patreon mailbag question: “Would having a second for a round robin event be of any use for a 2200 level player?”

1:02:00- Patreon mailbag question: ‘What approach and opening resources does Erwin recommend for club level players?”

1:05:30- How did IM Cor van Wijgerdan, co-creator of the Chess Steps Series come up with so many cool puzzles? 

Mentioned: Episode 142 with Han Schut, Episode 167 with IM Jop Delemarre

1:08:00- Are cloud-based engines taking over from heavy duty private machines? 

Mentioned: Chessify 

1:12:00- We wrap up with a bit more World Championship and Candidates Cycle talk 

Mentioned: FIDE Grand Prix 2022

1:18:00- Thanks so much to Erwin for sharing his insights. 

You can follow him on Twitter here. 

Keep up with his Chessable courses here. 

World Championship Bonus Pod #5- GM Vasyl Ivanchuk

You can Follow Ivanchuk’s Twitch Channel here

GM Vasyl Ivanchuk is a modern chess legend who has won countless tournaments including the 2016 World Rapid Championship and the 2007 FIDE World Blitz Championship. He has been ranked #2 in the World on 3 separate occasions. Vasyl is known for his creative play and his wide opening repertoire. Vasyl joined me just after the World Championship concluded to share his thoughts on the match, and to discuss his recent foray into Twitch streaming, his passion for checkers, and to answer my many questions about his illustrious career. So much fun to talk chess with "Chucky!"

You can follow/subscribe to Vasyl's Twitch channel here:

https://www.twitch.tv/ivanchukchess

Click here to download the Episode

0:00- Intro, Match Wrapup

6:00- GM Vasyl Ivanchuk joins the podcast!

If you would like to help support Perpetual Chess, you can do so here:

Book Recap #21- Discussing A First Book of Morphy with Mads Jønsson

Link for the book here

We are back for another Book Review podcast, a series called Chess Books Recaptured. This month we tackle Frisco Del Rosario’s First Book of Morphy, which is a Paul Morphy game collection book geared towards novice to intermediate players. My guest co-host this episode is Danish chess enthusiast, dad and linguist Mads Jønsson. As we note, First Book of Morphy does have some flaws, but Morphy’s games are amazing, and the annotations are helpful enough to make this book well-suited to its target audience. Please read on for lots more details, show notes, and relevant links. 

Click here to download the Episode

0:00- We introduce our guest go-host, Mads Jonson, and he shares for his suggestion that we recap the First Book of Morphy. 

6:30- We talk a bit about the book's background. 

Mentioned: Lichess Study games 1-60, and 61-69 

11:30- There are always great new courses from Chessable including FM Kamil Plichta’s Lifetime Repertoires: Accelerated Dragon. Check out what else is new here:

https://www.chessable.com/courses/all/new/

12:00- Perpetual Chess is also brought to you in part by AImchess.com. Check out the site, and if you decide to subscribe, use the code Perpetual30 to save 30%. 

13:00- Patreon mailbag question: “Did Morphy play at the level of a modern IM?” 

Mentioned: IM Ken Regan’s Intrinsic Rating Compendium, Chess Metrics Morphy 

17:00- What chapters did Mads find most helpful?

Mentioned: Book Recap #16 Logical Chess Move by Move 

25:00- What other changes could have been made stylistically? 

28:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessmood.com. They offer a huge video library with instruction on every phase of the game. 

29:00- We share a few of our favorite games and quotes. 

Mentioned: Morphy-Guibert 1958, Ben Finegold’s Paul Morphy videos, 

36:00- We give a list of pros and cons related to the books. 

39:00- What other “move by move” style books might one consider reading? (They are listed below in order of difficulty) 

Logical Chess Move by Move (Podcast about it in Book Recap 16)

The Most Instructive Chess Games of All Time 

Instructive Chess Miniatures 

World's Most Instructive Amateur Game Book 

Chess: The Art of Logical Thinking: From the First Move to the Last  

Nunn- Understanding Chess Move by Move 

Morphy Move by Move 

Chess Master vs. Amateur 

46:00- Tune in next month for a recap of Lipnitsky’s Questions of Modern Chess Theory with Martin Justesen a/k/a Say Chess!

Be sure to follow Mads on Twitter here. 

And we are always happy to support Chess in Slums. 

50:00- Blindfold puzzles are back! 

Puzzle #1- Meek-Morphy 1855 

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 exd4 4. Bc4 Bc5 5. Ng5 Nh6 6. Nxf7 Nxf7 7. Bxf7+ Kxf7

WHITE TO MOVE AND REGAIN MATERIAL 

Solution here: 

https://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1335871

Puzzle #2- Morphy-Conway 1959

1. e4 e5 2. f4 exf4 3. Nf3 g5 4. Bc4 g4 5. d4 gxf3 6. Qxf3 Bh6 7. O-O Ne7 8.

Bxf4 Bxf4 9. Bxf7+ Kxf7 10. Qxf4+ Kg7 

FIND MATE in TWO FROM THIS POSITION

Solution here: 

https://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=2036628

If you would like to help support Perpetual Chess, you can do so here.

World Championship Bonus Pod #4- GM Jacob Aagaard on the match, plus Shaun McCoy with a report from Dubai

GM Jacob Aagaard and Lucy

Shaun McCoy of Chess.com

GM Jacob Aagaard is an award winning author, and a founder of Quality Chess and of Killer Chess Training.com. With Magnus Carlsen firmly ahead in the match (by a score of 6.5 to 3.5), I thought it would be fun to check back in with GM Jacob Aagaard, who had written a prescient prediction for the match which was shared with our listeners in Episode 254. In our conversation, Aagaard expounds a bit on his thoughts on the match, and also shares his concerns about future World Championships when it comes to potential match formats and venues. It is always illuminating to hear GM Aagaard's thoughts!

Following the Aagaard interview Shaun McCoy of Chess.com joins the show to give an update from Dubai. Shaun shares his highlights so far and discusses what it was like to be on the premises for Magnus' historical win in Game 6. As always, you can find the timestamps for the interviews below.

Click here to download the Episode

0:00- Intro

10:00- GM Jacob Aagaard interview

43:45- Shaun McCoy joins the show

EP 256- Alex Crompton (Adult Improver Series)

Welcome back to another Adult Improver Edition of Perpetual Chess. In this episode, we feature another Queen’s Gambit convert to Perpetual Chess. 30-year-old tech executive and musician Alex Crompton recently became obsessed with the game and dove headlong into the best ways to improve at it. Alex is quick to note that his accomplishments are modest, but as he detailed on his blog, he has gone from total beginner to a respectable 1500 FIDE rating in less than a year. As our conversation reveals, lots of research and work went into this improvement. In our conversation, Alex shares tons of good study tips and reflections about the science of learning, including the ways that the study of languages has helped him improve his chess. It was a lot of fun hearing about Alex’s chess progress, and any listener of any rating can learn from this conversation. Please read on for lots of details, timestamps and relevant links.

Click here to download the Episode

0:00- For more information about the Harvard Chess Cognition Study go here. 

3:00- Alex joins the show, and we begin by discussing why Alex finds it challenging to follow the World Championship despite his enthusiasm for chess. 

Mentioned: The Art of Learning by IM Josh Waitzkin 

12:00- We discuss Alex’s adult improvement journey, which you can read about in his blog post here. 

18:30- NEW SPONSOR! Chessvis is an app designed designed to help you train your visualization skills. Search for it at an app store or get the links here. 

https://www.chessvis.com/

19:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessmood.com. They offer a huge video library with instruction on every phase of the game. 

20:00- What were Alex’s first steps to develop a system to study chess? 

Mentioned: Squareoff Chess, Bryght Labs’ ChessUp, Woodpecker Method on Chessable, Woodpecker Method Podcast with Neal Bruce, Michael De La Maza article- 400 Points in 400 Days, Tim Brennan’s Tactics Time on Chessable 

39:00- How did Alex approach the study of openings? 

Mentioned: Make it Stick by Peter C. Brown 

41:00- Alex shares some interesting research about why adults may improve at chess more slowly than kids. 

Mentioned: Some of the research Alex referenced is here. 

Lichess study, Episode 231 with Braden Laughlin, James Heisig: Remembering the Kanji, Episode 215 with Dr. Vishnu Sreekumar 

54:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com. Check out what's new from them here: New Chess Courses Online - For All Levels- Chessable.com Don’t forget to subscribe to the How to Chess podcast as well!

54:30- Perpetual Chess is also brought to you in part by AImchess.com. Check out the site, and if you decide to subscribe use the code Perpetual30 to save 30%. 

55:30- Patreon mailbag question: “What is Alex’s approach to learning openings?”

Mentioned: My First Chess Opening Repertoire for White, Lifetime Repertoires: Chessable 1. b3, Logical Chess Move by Move 

1:11:00- Patreon mailbag question: “Any theories on why ratings tend to repeatedly plateau and then jump?”

Mentioned: Episode 181 with Elijah Logozar 

1:15:00-What resources have helped Alex blunder less, rather than just solve tactics? 

Susan Polgar’s How to Learn Chess the Right Way Volume 3, FM Peter Giannatos’ Everyone’s First Chess Workbook

1:19:00- What are Alex’s next chess goals, if any? 

Mentioned: Sean Carroll’s Mindscapes: Episode 169 Games 

1:28:00- Thanks so much to Alex for sharing his insights. 

You can keep up with him via his blog here:

https://www.alexcrompton.com/

World Championship Bonus Pod #3- GM Jan Timman on the match so far, NM John MacArthur with a Dubai trip report.

Photo of GM Jan Timman via Wikimedia Commons

John MacArthur in Dubai with Nepo.

After 8 rounds, things have changed! As you may have heard, Magnus Carlsen has taken a 5-3 lead in the 2021 World Championship, highlighted by a record breaking, unforgettable win in Game 6. Please listen in as a do a quick rundown of the highlights of the match, then bring in two great guests: Grandmaster Jan Timman is the 9 time champion of the Netherlands, an award winning author, and was one of the highest rated players in the world for decades. Among other topics, Jan shares his thoughts on the match so far and discusses the ascendance of young Super GM Alireza Firouzja, who we could potentially see in the next World Championship. 

My second guest, John MacArthur is an accomplished scholastic coach and Twitch streamer who joined me just after returning from Dubai on Monday. Dubai was the 6th World Championship match he has attended. John shares some great stories and contrasts this event with the many other memorable matches he has attended. 

Timestamps and the links you need are below.

Click here to download the Episode

10:00- GM Jan Timman joins me!

Jan is a founding editor and columnist for New in Chess Magazine 

His latest book is, The Unstoppable American: Bobby Fischer and the Road to Reykjavik 

33:30- NM John MacArthur joins fresh from returning from Dubai.

Check out his photos from Dubai on his Instagram here. 

Follow him on Twitch here.

On Twitter here 

World Championship Bonus Pod #2- FM Mike Klein joins from Dubai to recap 5 tense, deadlocked rounds.

Do we look concerned about these draws?

After 5 rounds, it is still all draws! FM Mike Klein of Chess.com joins me to quickly recap the games, to track the ongoing storylines, and then to give some perspective on how the media coverage of this World Championship compares to the 3 prior World Championship matches he has covered.

Timestamps and the links you need are below.

Click here to download the Episode

0:00- Ben gives a quick recap of the 2 more recent games, and on the keys to the match so far.

6:45- FM Mike Klein joins me to help assess the chess so far. Are so many draws surprising?

27:00- Mike contrasts the venue and the media coverage to prior World Championships.

Links:

Episode 85 with FM Mike Klein

Mike's Twitter

Chesskid.com

Episode 255- WGM Tatev Abrahamyan

Photo by Lennart Ootes via Bryghtlabs blog

This week’s guest on Perpetual Chess marks the return visit of one of the top female players in the US, WGM Tatev Abrahamyan. I caught up with Tatev after a hectic few months in which she competed in the FIDE Women’s World Cup and also competed in and placed 4th in the US Women’s Championship. For good measure, she moved from Southern California to Kansas City to begin her work as the Director of Chess Content at chess startup Bryght Labs. Tatev’s busy schedule gave us plenty to talk about, as Tatev gave some insightful tournament reports, discussed her new job, and, of course, dispensed some chess improvement advice and some reflections on dealing with setbacks in chess. It is always fun to talk chess with Tatev, so we hope you make time for this interview in between World Championship rounds. Please read on for more details and show notes. 

Click here to download

0:00- GM Johan Sebastian Christiansen recently expressed his extreme frustration with a slump in his competitive chess. Tatev talks about how common such feelings of frustration can be for be top players, and ways to work through it. 

Mentioned: Episode 49 with WGM Tatev Abrahamyan , Chess.com Article with GM Alireza Firouzja’s quote regarding chess and mental health

11:00- How does Tatev reflect on her 4th place finish in the 2021 US Women’s Chess Championship? 

Mentioned: GM Alejandro Ramirez, You can review Tatev’s games here, How to Chess Episode 17 with IM Lawrence Trent, 

26:00- Now that she has a 9-5 job, Tatev reflects on how she will manage her chess career as well as a new job in a new town (Kansas City, MO). 

29:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessmood.com. They offer a huge video library with instruction on every phase of the game. 

31:00- Tatev gives the trip report from the FIDE Women’s Chess World Cup in Sochi, Russia, and we discuss the Women’s World Championship Cycle. 

Mentioned: Episode 243 with GM Anna Muzychuk, Information on the 2022 FIDE Woman’s Candidate Tournament is here, Goryachkina-Motylev 2021 

39:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com. Check out what's new from them here: New Chess Courses Online - For All Levels- Chessable.com Don’t forget to subscribe to the How to Chess podcast as well!

39:30- Perpetual Chess is also brought to you in part by AImchess.com. Check out the site, and if you decide to subscribe use the code Perpetual30 to save 30%. 

40:00- Does Tatev think that US Women's Champion IM Carissa Yip will be competing for a World Championship someday? 

Mentioned: FM Jennifer Yu, IM Annie Wang 

43:00- What sort of products is Tatev working on at her chess startup, Bryght Labs? 

Mentioned: ChessUp, GM Levon Aronian 

1:01:00- Patreon mailbag question: “What tips can we share for how to evaluate a position?”

1:05:00- We discuss GM Rustam Kasimdzhanov’s recent interview about chess engines and his work with GM Fabiano Caruana. 

Mentioned: More information about Kasimdzhanov’s interview with Ilya Levitov here

1:14:00- Patreon mailbag question: What is the secret to Tatev’s success in her OTB games against Latvian/American legend GM Alex Shabalov? 

Mentioned: Krush-Abrahamyan 2021, 

1:17:00- 

Thanks so much to Tatev for joining us! 

If you decide to order ChessUp from BryghtLabs.com, use the promo code “Perpetual” or the promo code should be inputted directly with this link. 

World Championship Bonus Pod #1- The match so far, + interviews from Dubai with Geert van der Velde and Jonathan Corbblah

Jonathan Corbblah defends his title

A tired C.E.O. is on the left :)

With the Carlsen-Nepomniatchtchi World Championship match tied after 3 hard-fought draws, I do a quick rundown of the main story lines emerging from what has been a tense and entertaining battle so far. Then, we get reports from Dubai from Chessable C.E.O. Geert van der Velde, followed by Chess.com reporter/Trivia Whiz Jonathan Corbblah.

Timestamps and the links you need are below.

Click here to download the episode

0:00- Ben on the 3 key story lines from the match so far.

14:00- Chessable C.E.O. Geert van der Velde on what its like to watch the match from the Play Magnus lounge in Dubai.

30:30- Trivia Whiz turned Chess.com reporter Jonathan Corbblah on how he wound up in Dubai, and his favorite foods and memories from his trip so far.

Links:

Geert’s Twitter

Jonathan’s Twitter

Chessable Classroom (as Geert mentioned)

Jonathan's Chess: A Reflection of Us is being premiered each day on Chess.com’s World Championship Broadcasts.

Perpetual Chess Episode 161 with Geert van der Velde

Perpetual Chess Episode 48 with Jonathan Corbblah

Episode 254- World Championship Preview Part 2 with Tai Pruce Zimmerman

My guest for Part 2 of the World Chess Championship preview is chess blogger Tai Pruce Zimmerman. Tai is an accountant by training, who created the excellent Chess by the Numbers blog to write about elite chess from a statistical perspective. With the World Championship just days away, I was excited to have the opportunity to ask Tai to walk us through various scenarios in the upcoming showdown between GMs Magnus Carlsen and Ian Nepomniatchtchi. We tackled questions such as the following:  Based on rating, how likely is Magnus to win? How likely are we to see tiebreaks? Would Magnus be as big a favorite if the match were to go to rapid tiebreaks? How likely would it be that one player “adopt” another? We take on all of these questions and more, as Tai describes how his model is made and tells all of the numbers we need to know for the match. As always, please read on for more details, timestamps, and relevant links! 

Click here to download the Episode

0:00- Info from the Intro: 

Be sure to go to MagnusNepo.com to join Aimchess’ Prediction Challenge! 

Check out Chess.com’s easy-to-read World Championship schedule breakdown here. 

Perpetual Chess Bonus World Championship Pods are planned for: November 29, December 2, December 6, December 9 and  December 13

3:00- We briefly review the format of the World Championship Match, and then Tai dives into what goes into his statistical model, and what it says about the upcoming match. 

Mentioned: Episode 249 with Dr. Mark Glickman, Nate Solon’s article about the World Championship 

11:00- How would Tai’s model assess a potential rapid playoff? 

16:00- What did Tai do to guess the competitors rating strengths other than just use their current FIDE ratings? 

Mentioned: Pinnacle Sports World Chess Championships Odds

20:30- If the match goes to blitz tiebreaks, who would be the favorite to win the match? 

Mentioned: Matt Jensen’s World Championship Preview of Chess.com 

27:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com. Check out what's new from them here: New Chess Courses Online - For All Levels- Chessable.com Don’t forget to subscribe to the How to Chess podcast as well!

27:30- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Aimchess.com. ACT NOW to enter their free Magnus-Nepo challenge on this site: https://magnusnepo.com/

29:00- Patreon mailbag question: “How does acclaimed trainer and author, GM Jacob Aagaard of KillerChessTraining.com assess the World Championship?” 

Mentioned: Tarjei Svenson’s summary of a recent Magnus Carlsen interview 

31:00- Patreon mailbag question  “What are the odds of Magnus adopting Nepo?” 

33:30- How does the Aimchess.com algorithm assess the players strengths and weaknesses?

Mentioned: Aimchess analysis here 

35:00- We briefly discuss GM Alireza Firouzja’s recent dominance. 

42:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessmood.com. They offer a huge video library with instruction on every phase of the game. 

43:00- Patreon mailbag question: “Any chance of Tai’s blog being sponsored by a major chess site?” 

Mentioned: TwoPlusTwo chess forum, New in Chess Free World Championship Digital Magazine, Dennis Monokroussos’ The Chess Mind Blog

50:00- Tai shares a few more details about the methodology of his model.

54:00- Tai shares a bit more about his background and his other interests outside of chess. 

56:00- In terms of rating differential, what prior World Championship provides the best historical analogue?

57:00- Thanks so much to Tai for sharing his data with us. 

Check out and subscribe to his blog here: 

https://chessnumbers.wordpress.com/

You can follow him on Twitter here: 

https://twitter.com/ChessNumbers

Episode 253- GM Daniel King Previews the World Championship, plus more!

Photo by Lennart Ootes, courtesy of GM Daniel King

Grandmaster Daniel King is a popular Commentator, Author, YouTube Creator and Chessable Author. As a player, he  has represented England internationally, won many tournaments, and has beaten the likes of Anand and Korchnoi! On his excellent YouTube channel, Powerplay Chess,  Daniel has recently been sharing his analysis of key games between Magnus Carlsen and Ian Nepomniatchtchi.  With such a resume, he is the perfect person to join me for a preview of the World Championship match, which is less than a week away. Of course, when Daniel visits the podcast there is always more to be discussed. Other highlights include his unforgettable  interactions with GM Viktor Korchnoi, and his long relationship with the Kalashnikov Sicilian, which is the subject of his excellent new Chessable course. Please read on for all of the details and relevant links. 

Click here to download the Episode

0:00- 

Info from the Intro: 

Be sure go to MagnusNepo.com to join Aimchess’ Prediction Challenge! 

Check out Chess.com’s easy-to-read World Championship schedule breakdown here. 

Perpetual Chess Bonus World Championship Pods are planned for: November 29, December 2, December 6, December 9 and  December 13

6:00- Daniel King joins me to share his thoughts on the World Championship match. 

Mentioned: Wang Hao 2021-Nepomniatchtchi Candidates 2021, Vachier-Lagrave-Nepomniatchtchi Candidates 2021, GM Nigel Short, GM Michael Adams, GM John Nunn, Peter Doggers interview with GM Fabiano Caruana, Caruana-Carlsen Game 1, 2018, World Championship Odds on Pinnacle.com 

32:00- Patreon mailbag question: “What is the etiquette for former seconds discussing their work with a World Championship contender, a la Rustam Kasimdzhanov’s recent comments about GM Fabiano Caruana. ?”

35:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chess.com- be sure to check out their new Game Review feature after every game 

35:30- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessmood.com. They offer a huge video library with instruction on every phase of the game. 

37:00- What is Daniel’s history with the Kalashnikov opening, the opening that is the subject of his  new Chessable course? 

45:30- Does Daniel have a favorite opening? 

47:00- Patreon mailbag question:” Does Daniel have any plans to update his classic book Mastering the Spanish?”

Mentioned: Chess Magazine 

52:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com. Check out what's new from them here: New Chess Courses Online - For All Levels- Chessable.com Don’t forget to subscribe to the How to Chess podcast as well!

52:30- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Aimchess.com. ACT NOW to enter their free Magnus-Nepo challenge on this site: https://magnusnepo.com/

53:00- Patreon mailbag question: “Will Daniel ever flip the board so Black is on the bottom when showing the Black POV on Powerplay Chess?” 

56:00- Patreon mailbag question- “Is there any video of Daniel playing the bass?” 

Mentioned: Nette Robinson art 

58:00- What were Daniel’s interactions with Korchnoi like? 

Mentioned: Book Recap #20- Talking Korchnoi with John Fernandez, Korchnoi-Karpov Game 31, 1978

Thanks as always to Daniel for joining the show!

If you enjoy his content, feel free to support his Patreon page, as I do. 

Youtube- Powerplay Chess

Free short and sweet version of Daniel’s Kalashnikov course: 

https://www.chessable.com/short-sweet-kings-kalashnikov-sicilian/course/83454/

Purchase the full course here: King’s Kalashnikov Sicilian 

Follow Daniel on Twitter here 

Episode 252- GM Andy Soltis returns again

Andy Soltis back in 1981, photo via Wikimedia Commons

GM Andy Soltis is an award winning journalist,World Chess Hall of Fame member, a Chess Life Magazine columnist , and a  prolific author who has written over 50 books. In this interview, we discuss Andy’s most recents works,  Smyslov, Bronstein, Geller, Taimanov and Averbakh: A Chess Multibiography with 220 Games, and 500 Chess Questions Answered: for all new chess players.  We also discuss Andy’s own chess improvement journey, as well as the upcoming World Chess Championship. Andy is always fun to chat with due to his encyclopedic knowledge of all things chess. For lots more details, relevant links, and timestamps, please read on. 

Click here to download the Episode

Previous appearances by GM Andy Soltis:

Episode 91 with GM Andy Soltis 

Episode 172 with GM Andy Soltis 

Book Recap #17 - Discussing Zurich 1953 with FM Nate Solon and GM Andy Soltis  

0:00- We begin by getting Andy’s chess improvement advice, including a Patreon question about whether Andy thinks chess books are superior to online learning tools as means for improving your game.

Mentioned: DeGroot’s Thought and Choice in Chess, GM Hikaru Nakaura, GM Yasser Seirawan Weltgeschichte Des Schachs Lieferung 27- Boris Spassky, GM Daniel Gormally, GM Walter Browne 

12:45- What is the proper mix between studying and playing? 

Mentioned: GM Alireza Firouzja 

15:30- What most helped Andy improve at chess? 

Mentioned: GM Reuben Fine 

17:30- How did GM Yefim Geller go from Candidate Master to World Class player in his early 20s? 

Mentioned: GM Bobby Fischer, 

22:00-Patreon mailbag question:  What was Andy’s most memorable Marshall Chess Club Championship victory? 

Mentioned: FM Orest Popovich

26:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com. Check out what's new from them here: New Chess Courses Online - For All Levels- Chessable.com Don’t forget to subscribe to theHow to Chess podcast as well!

26:30- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Aimchess.com. ACT NOW to enter their free Magnus-Nepo challenge on this site: https://magnusnepo.com/

27:00- We discuss a bit about each player in GM Soltis’ beautiful new book, Smyslov, Bronstein, Geller, Taimanov and Averbakh  starting with former World Champion GM Vassily Smyslov. 

33:00- What should we know about GM David Bronstein?  Was his Candidates match with Boleslavsky in 1950 really fixed? 

Mentioned: Episode 80 with GM Genna Sosonko, Ruth Haring, GM Bobby Fischer  

42:00- What should we know about legendary Ukrainian GM, Yefim Geller? 

Mentioned: GM Boris Spassky 

44:00- Mark Taimanov was a world class pianist and chess player both. What else distinguished him from his chess contemporaries? 

Mentioned: I was the Victim of Fischer, Vspominiaia-Samykh-Samykh, GM Eduard Gufeld, Chessgames.com Taimanov-Matulovic “Caveat Emptor” 

53:00- What should we know about GM Yuriy Averbakh? 

Mentioned: GM Boris Spassky, GM Lubomir Kavalek 

59:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessmood.com. They offer a huge video library with instruction on every phase of the game. 

1:00:00- Patreon mailbag question: “What book would Andy love to write that he hasn’t written yet?”

1:03:00- What does Andy think are the most  important factors in which of his books sell the best? 

Mentioned: GM John Fedorowicz, GM Arthur Bisguier, GM Pal Benko: My Life Games and Compositions, Magnus Carlsen: 60 Memorable Games,Pawn Structure Chess, Chess Fundamentals, Episode 240: Pawn Book Championship with Neal Bruce 

1:12:00- Patreon mailbag question: What does Andy think of the World Championship match? Has Magnus been out of form recently? 

1:19:00- Thanks as always to Andy for sharing his immense chess knowledge. You can check out his latest books here:

500 Chess Questions Answered 

Smyslov, Bronstein, Geller, Taimanov and Averbakh 

If you would like to help support Perpetual Chess, you can do so here:

Donate — The Perpetual Chess Podcast

Episode 251- John Hartmann is back!

John Hartmann is the Editor of US Chess’ Chess Life and Chess Life Online, and the host of the podcast, Cover Stories with Chess Life. He was recently named the 2021 Chess Journalist of the Year by the Chess Journalists of America, the second consecutive year he received this honor.

When John last visited the podcast, US Chess was just coming to grips with the financial impact the pandemic would have on the organization. 18 months later, I am happy to report that John is back to give a more upbeat assessment of the state of the US Chess Federation. John is also an expert in chess computers - he built his current chess computer from scratch! John shares some fascinating tidbits about how top players use engines these days. Lastly, although it is not his top priority, John tries to work on his own game when time permits. While he prefers to think of himself as a #chessamateur instead of a #chessimprover, his online blitz rating is at an all-time high, and he always has useful book recommendations for improvers. So as always, there is much to learn from John Hartmann in this interview! Please read on for all of the details, plus timestamps and relevant links. 

Click here to download the Episode

0:00- We begin by catching up on the financial health of US Chess, which hit some tough times during the pandemic. 

Mentioned: Cover Stories with Chess Life with GM Alex Lenderman, Episode 179 with John Hartmann (John was also on episodes 60 and 120), John Rockefeller III Endows US Chess National Tournaments

20:00- Has John read any good chess books lately? Are chess books truly, finally, in decline? 

Mentioned: Episode 4 with IM Kostya Kavutskiy, On the Origin of Good Moves by IM Willy Hendriks, Everything and Less: The Novel in the Age of Amazon, JJ Lang, IM Levy Rozman, Agadmator, FM Robert Shlyakhtenko, Dr. Christopher Chabris 

42:00- Patreon Mailbag Question: “What was the most instructive chess book John has ever read?”

Mentioned: Chess Steps Method Workbooks, Episode 241 with FM Peter Giannatos, Everyone’s First Chess Workbook by FM Peter Giannatos, Rakhmanov’s Secrets of Opening Preparation 

53:00-  Perpetual Chess is also brought to you in part by AImchess.com. Check out the site, and if you decide to subscribe use the code Perpetual30 to save 30%. 

53:30-  Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com. Check out what's new from them here: New Chess Courses Online - For All Levels- Chessable.com Don’t forget to subscribe to the How to Chess podcast as well!

54:30-What is John doing to work on his own games? 

Mentioned:Jacob Aagaard’s Killer Chess Training,  Botvinnik: One Hundred Selected Games, GM Sam Shankland on Cover Stories with Chess Life, IM John Watson 

1:02:00- What are the most recent developments in the advancement of chess engines? 

Mentioned: Stockfish 14.1, Leela 0.28.0, 2021 Russian Championship Superfinals, Vitiugov - Andreikin, Chessify, GM Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, GM Ian Nepomniachtchi, Skolkovo Innovation Center

1:11:00- How will Chess Life Online be covering the World Championship? 

1:15:00- Thanks to John for joining us! 

For more information about US Chess and Chess Journalists of America upcoming seminars, go here: 

https://new.uschess.org/news/cja-continuing-education-series-announced

For US Chess annotated games from the US Championships, go here:

https://lichess.org/study/iLDop9iy

Follow John on Twitter here: https://twitter.com/hartmannchess?lang=en

Email John at John.Hartmann at Uschess.org 

Episode 250- FM Asa Hoffmann

FM Asa Hoffman with his wife Virginia at the Marshall Chess Club

This week FM Asa Hoffman joins us for an interesting talk. Asa is an author, speed chess specialist, and New York City chess legend. Like Bobby Fischer, Asa was born in 1943, and both spent their formative years in NYC. With such shared history, Bobby Fischer is one of the many chess legends with whom Asa had personal encounters and blitz battles. In fact, Asa has met every chess World Champion who came after Max Euwe! He also has beaten Fischer in a famous blitz game, and once defeated Gata Kamsky in a rapid game. In our interview, Asa sheds light on the personality of Bobby Fischer and tells a few of his favorite stories from his encounters with countless chess legends who have passed through New York. Please read on for more details, timestamps and relevant links. 

Click here to Download the Episode

0:00- What are Asa’s memories of Bobby Fischer? How does the current chess moment compare to the Fischer boom?

Mentioned: Hans Kmoch, Al Horowitz, Sylvia Miles, GM Yasser Seirawan, Bernard Zuckerman, Asa Hoffman vs. Bobby Fischer (blitz, 1963) 

13:00- Who are the strongest blitz players Asa ever played?

Mentioned: GM Valentin Arbakov, GM Roman Dzindzichashvili, GM Yasser Seirawan, Polgar sisters, Episode 185 with IM Stuart Rachels, IM Jorge Sammour-Hasbun, GM Nicolas Rossolimo 

19:30-After Fischer won the World Championship in 1972, did Asa ever see him again? 

22:45- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessmood.com. They have a huge library of opening, middlegame, and endgame instructional videos, as well as a free blog. 

23:45- Asa tells some more stories from playing against Fischer, as well as describing many of the classic NYC chess venues. 

29:00- Why did Asa decide to drop out of Columbia University to pursue chess? 

31:00- What was Asa’s involvement with the movie Searching for Bobby Fischer? 

Mentioned: GM Nona Gaprindishivili lawsuit against Netflix 

33:00- What did Asa do to improve at chess?

Mentioned: Mike Valvo, IM Greg Shahade, John Fernandez, GM Gata Kamsky, GM Julio Becerra, GM Michael Rohde, IM Jay Bonin 

39:00- Patreon Mailbag Question: What was Asa’s most memorable game against IM Jay Bonin? 

Mentioned: Active Pieces by IM Jay Bonin and Greg Keener 

43:00- Perpetual Chess is also brought to you in part by AImchess.com. Check out the site, and if you decide to subscribe use the code Perpetual30 to save 30%. 

43:30- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com. Check out what's new from them here: New Chess Courses Online - For All Levels- Chessable.com Don’t forget to subscribe to the How to Chess podcast as well!

45:00- What were Asa’s highest stakes blitz matches? 

Mentioned: IM Cris Ramayrat, Episode 193 with Tom Murphy, GM Fabiano Caruana, GM Robert Hess, GM Alex Lenderman, GM Irina Krush 

51:00- Patreon Mailbag Question: When will Asa’s memoir be published and will it be available as an e-book? 

Mentioned: Dr. Frank Brady

53:00- Asa has met every world champion since Max Euwe. What are his most memorable interactions?

Mentioned: GM Miguel Najdorf, Edward Lasker 

57:00- Asa tells a few stories of fights and muggings at NYC gaming establishments

1:02:00- In addition to chess, Asa plays Scrabble, bridge, poker, and backgammon, and he dabbled in betting at horse racing as well. What is Asa’s 2nd best game after chess? 

1:04:00- Has Asa had any non-chess jobs?

Mentioned: Al Horowitz 

1:06:00- Has Asa played GM Maurice Ashley? Did he ever see GM Viktor Korchnoi in New York? 

Mentioned: GM Anatoly Karpov, GM Maxim Dlugy, IM Anatoly Lein 

1:09:00- Did Asa ever play GM Samuel Reshevsky?  

Mentioned: GM John Fedorowicz 

1:12:30- Asa's World Championship thoughts

1:14:30- What are Asa’s favorite chess books? 

Mentioned: Masters of the Chessboard by Richard Reti, The Psychology of the Chess Player by Reuben Fine 

1:18:00- Why did Asa stop betting on horse racing? 

1:22:00- Thanks to Asa for joining the show! You can reach him via his chess.com profile here:

https://www.chess.com/member/asahoffmann