| Apr-04-07 |
| atripodi: Is there anyone who's done better at both OTB play and composition? Is there a GM in one who has a title in the other or anything? |
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| Apr-04-07 |
| Plato: <atripodi> I'm a big fan of chess compositions. Afek is a brilliant problemist indeed, and I'm surprised that nobody has posted on his page before. It's not very well known these days but Tarrasch was also a talented chess composer, as was Lasker. Even the supposedly "lazy" Capablanca composed a few nice problems (probably didn't take him too long). Reti is still famous for his endgame compositions, of course. More modern GMs: Paul Keres had some elegant compositions to his name. Yuri Averbakh composed some nice endgame studies between the 50s and 70s. Pal Benko, Jan Timman, Alexander Beliavsky, John Nunn, and Pavel Blatny also come to mind. (I remember a particularly beautiful composition by Pavel Blatny which he personally demonstrated for a delighted audience at a tournament some years ago.) Of course, in my opinion the greatest chess composers were not the Grandmasters. In no particular order, I would say the greatest problemists were Loyd, Troitzky, Kubbel, Kasparian, and Liburkin. |
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Apr-04-07
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| acirce: <In no particular order, I would say the greatest problemists were Loyd, Troitzky, Kubbel, Kasparian, and Liburkin.> All great names, but perhaps with a slight slant in favour of endgame study composers. :-) To add some (mainly) non-study problemists off the top of my head, I'd suggest Vukcevich, Loshinsky, Caillaud, Petkov (with an amazing 303,50 FIDE Album points!), Rehm, Petrovic etc...etc... |
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| Apr-04-07 |
| atripodi: Thanks guys. Can you give me any pointers with which to get started in the world of chess composition? I know the PCCC website but that's it. |
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| Apr-04-07 |
| Plato: <acirce> I know very little about the non-endgame compositions, hence the slant! I'll have to look into the work of some of those people you mention. <atripodi and other chess problem enthusiasts:> From my "top-five" list, a lot of people might think it's too much to include Liburkin in the same category as the other four. It's probably true that he didn't compose *as many* brilliant studies as the others listed (though he still composed a lot of them!), but the best compositions of Mark Liburkin are right up there with the best of the others. I will post my favorite of Liburkin's compositions here because unfortunately there is no ChessGames page for this great problemist. Mark Liburkin died tragically in his early 40s. He composed the following problem at the age of 23: <M. Liburkin, 1933.
White to move and win:>
click for larger viewWhite has a huge material advantage, of course, but Black makes use of his opponent's vulnerable King position to create some serious threats with his three remaining pieces. In order to win, White needs to play like a magician: 1. Ne4+ Kd3
2. Nc5+ Kc3
3. Nb3 Be5
4. f4 Bg7
5. e8N!
The first underpromotion, a knight, which is necessary to avoid mate. 5... Bh8
6. f5 Be5
7. Bh2! Bxh2
8. b7 Be5
9. b8B!
The second underpromotion, a bishop -- getting a queen would be a blunder because Black can force a draw after 9.b8Q?? Kxc4+, 10.Qxe5 c1Q+, 11.Nxc1 stalemate. 9. ... Bxb8
10. Nc7! Bxc7
11. e7 Be5
12. e8R!
The third underpromotion, a rook -- getting a queen would allow the same forced stalemate as before 12... Bf6
13. Re6
and Liburkin's original composition stops here. For completeness, the win is clear after: 13... Bd4
14. Re1! Bf6
15. Rb1! Kd3+
16. Rb2 Ke2
17. a4 Kd1
18. a3 c1Q+
19. Nxc1 Kxc1
20. c5 Bxb2+
21. Ka2 Be5
22. a5
and the pawns are unstoppable. |
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Apr-04-07
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| pawn to QB4: Hi atripodi - here's the best known game from a match between another double IM and the one guy I know who's an answer to your original question: Black was OTB IM, comp GM in Chekhover vs Kasparian, 1936.
If you go to the Smyslov page and very hurriedly to page 10 there are three wonderful studies posted by capanegra, which I think show Smyslov had the talent as a composer, but I don't think the title. |
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| Apr-04-07 |
| Plato: <If you go to the Smyslov page and very hurriedly to page 10...> LOL ;-) |
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| Apr-04-07 |
| atripodi: Something else I just found out: Afek also as the FM title in problem solving. This gives him three FIDE titles, as well as the title of international arbiter. Surely no one tops that. |
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Apr-16-07
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| gambitfan: Player of the Day PLOD 16/04/2007 |
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| Apr-16-07 |
| BIDMONFA: Yochanan Afek AFEK, Yochanan
http://www.bidmonfa.com/afek_yochan...
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| Oct-11-08 |
| GrahamClayton: <atripodi>Is there anyone who's done better at both OTB play and composition? Is there a GM in one who has a title in the other or anything? Atripodi,
John Nunn, Jonathan Mestel and Ram Soffer have received the GM title for both OTB play and chess compositions. Getting back to Afek, as well as being a player, composer and arbiter, he is also a pretty good chess journalist as well. |
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Jul-11-09
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| whiteshark: 1/ <Y. Afek, 1972 >
click for larger viewWhite to move wins |
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