october 4 2022
Another good audience for this first course of the new season, without any technical problems due to the number of speakers we have had in the past.
The absence of Pierre and Abdel was compensated by the presence of Maurice and Clément as well as the return of Véronique and Jacques to deconstruct the 2 fantastic endgames and the game of the day of a Slovenian (and not Latvian as usual) pyromaniac of the chessboard.
In the fairy tale, a tribute to Heinonen who put the pieces in the box a short time ago.
Below the report of the Master in full possession of his means.
Good reading to all.
Master's words
"Democracy is not the law of numbers. It is its punishment" (J. Barbey d'Aurevilly). Please, stay away from journalopes and politichiens. And don't forget that "ready-made ideas are made to be defeated".
"It is not a stone that you have in place of your heart, for a stone, at least, is pretty to look at" ("The Cat and the Mice", 2010).
"In a nation of chivalry, in a nation of men of honour, ten thousand swords would have been drawn from their scabbards to avenge the Queen, even from a mere glance that threatened her, from an insult. But the century of chivalry is over. The century of economists and calculators has succeeded it, and the glory of Europe is forever extinguished" (Ed. Burke).
"Better to be envied than pitied" (François Périer in "Les veinards", 1963).
Never will I ask her if she'll marry me I know she'd turn me down Cause... I'm just a country boy Money have I none But I've got silver in the stars And gold in the morning sun.
After the mistakes mentioned on 26-11-2019 (§ 3) & 9-11-2021 (§ 10 and footer), another unfortunate anglicism : an "alternative" is in French a couple of possibilities and not, as is too often heard, another possibility. Another example? We don't say "le narratif", this word being an adjective, but the "récit". We know very well that we are in the middle of cancracy (dictatorship of dunces).
White has a Bishop, Black has pawns; we spoke on April 26, 2022 of "the difficulty of converting an advantage of a figure" (it was about a "bad Bishop"). We are this time, as on November 9, 2021, confronted with a black rook-pawn which complicates the decision making. In particular the moment of the departure of the White King towards the Queen side.
Triple echo. No reciprocal zugzwangs in B+P / 3P, or almost? Let's catch up with a pawn ending including three echoing ZZs, one of them discovered by the commentator 25 years before the super-monsters. All three provoked by the same move ...b7-b6! Theoretical novelty? And even a fourth for dessert.
Exercises: a difficult choice in the R / R + 2P endgame, with a whole host of ZZs logically linked together. Relaxation with a little "where would you play your King? It follows a festival on the "beautiful couple" Queen + Knight, helped all the same by a white pawn b7. Finally, a new example on the changing of role of which we had spoken, in particular, about François Molnar. http://lecoursdumaitre.e-monsite.com/en/pages/lessons/cat-2014/page-1.html
The game of the day was played by a Montenegrin who died in Serbia, against a Slovenian. And where? In Croatia, in Rovinj and Zagreb, where your "master" was not long ago. A beautiful "Yugoslav" synthesis (which we complete later with a jewel of Fadil) that would have pleased our dear Gligo (let's forget the sad 1991-5 period). The said 1975 tournament won by Jules, my Hungarian friend who had beaten me 4 years earlier in Bagneux. It's a small world...
A remark on this subject. "The game, the problem, the study", said Professor Hieronymus in 1978. Did you notice that it is the "Yugoslavs" who took up this triple challenge: the Croats for the problem and the study, with the FIDE Album born in 1961 thanks to the great Nenad, the Serbs for the game and the study, thanks to the Šahovski informator born in 1966 and to the 5 volumes of the "Enciklopedija Završnica" (endings), born in 1982.
The Slovenian genius had already beaten Ljubo in the same opening, see on the 11th move, also sacrificing his Queen. Fear of risks? He does not know, and his opponent will not be reluctant to fight. One will appreciate the impressive activity of the black Bishop of white squares on three neighbouring diagonals.
In fairyland, our super-grandmaster has just won the first prize on Julia's site with a... super-AUW. The Lions replace the Noctambules of his other Latvian masterpiece (Jurmala 2008). Unfortunately, his Finnish counterpart, Unto Heinonen, has left us. Here is a fairly recent work, a splendid " offbeat Babson ". Requiescat in pace.
Training: some 2# from a gifted Italian (the 1st is the most complex). A few others, including two from my "host" on rue d'Argout (study the 2nd one carefully, with its 5 trials). In 3 moves, three masterpieces of another genius, Cecil Alfred Lucas Bull, wonderful composer of chess "sonatas". You want to make me happy? Concentrate on the first one (the position is so nice...) and let me know how long it takes you.
An helpmate in 3 that tortured me, then an amusing ambush in 5 moves from the big Bosnian, easy enough for a human but that paralysed the engines. We finish with two selfmates, the one in 3 (illustrating an old theme) more difficult than the one in 4!
A nice little problem: in Ke1, Rg2 & h1, Bd4, Pb2 & c2 / Be4, we ask to add the Black King so that White mate in 1 move. Apparently 2 solutions, no? (K. Fabel, 1950). Do not protest, it is very easy!
My compliments to the divine Pia, gold medalist in Chennai. I had met her in Gausdal in 1980, but had only played against her brother Dan. Decades later, in the suburbs of Paris, she asked me if I remembered Gausdal. Kan jag glömma ? May you always know the truth And see the lights surrounding you May you stay Forever young.
Enjoy also the refreshed courses, especially the one of 3 January 2006, with an improved analysis of Gelfand-Piket, and also a less inaccurate English language version of the first years of the course. Finally, a gastronomic note, if you have not yet returned: go and taste some of the best lamb in the world on the island of Krk. Just after Kosić (the little blackbird) turn right towards Vrh: you will be forgiven your difficulties in pronouncing the names of both the island and the village.
Have a good (double) tasting. Deus vos custodiat.
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