Episode 236 Dr. Courtney Frey (Adult Improver Series)

Welcome to another “Adult improver” edition of Perpetual Chess. Our guest this time is Dr. Courtney Frey. Courtney is a 35 year old doctor (radiologist) and father of 2 kids. Like a lot of us he played in a chess club during his school years,  but then didn’t play for many yearsuntil he finished medical school. He got more serious during the pandemic, started taking lessons with a coach, and he has seen his LiChess Rapid rating go from the 1500s to 1900 in about a year! As you will hear, Courtney has been successful with a very balanced approach to chess improvement that focuses on studying the aspects of chess that he enjoys most. Courtney had a lot of helpful tips to share- you can find relevant links and timestamps below! 

Click here to download the episode

0:00- Did you know that Chessable now sponsors an adult improvement weekly chess podcast called How to Chess?  Did you know that you can subscribe to it on Spotify and all the other podcast apps? Be sure to subscribe, or go to Howtochess.com for more info. 

https://open.spotify.com/show/5SzyXVaBZtM8CA6dtBQj7o?si=Q5SZzmcXT4i65y219xKTzQ&dl_branch=1

2:00- Courtney briefly delves into his chess background prior to his renaissance that began during Quarantine. 

Mentioned: Episode 87 with Adult Improver Stacia Pugh

6:00- Once Courtney decided to start training what did he do? 

Mentioned:  Episode 194 with Yuriy Krykun, Book Recap #14- Discussing The Seven Deadly Chess Sins with David Franklin,

 The Seven Deadly Chess Sins (Scotland's Youngest Grandmaster Discusses the Most Common Ca): Rowson, Jonathan: 9781901983364: Amazon.com: Books

13:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by AImchess.com. Check out their site, and if you decide to subscribe use the code Perpetual30 to save 30%. 

13:45- Courtney answers a question from the Patreon mailbag relating to how he selected his opening repertoire. Then he provides more detail on his chess study regimen. 

Mentioned: IM Yuriy Krykun’s Chessable Course- The Dynamic Italian Game 

30:00- What does Courtney do when he faces an opening move he hasn’t seen before? 

Mentioned: Chessable Course- My First White Opening Repertoire 

35:30- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com! Check out their latest offerings here. New Chess Courses Online - For All Levels in all - Chessable.com

Also be sure to subscribe to the How to Chess podcast, more info here:

https://howtochess.com/

36:00- Courtney shares a few more recommendations, he has found many ways to improve beyond tactics training! 

Mentioned: The Checkmate Patterns Manual 

60:00- Thanks so much to Courtney for joining the show! 

Episode 235- Joe Posnanski

This week, Perpetual Chess features a different kind of guest, Joe Posnanski was twice- named the best sportswriter in America by the Associated Press. He is also a popular podcaster and best selling author of 6 books. I have been a huge fan of Joe’s writing for many years, so when he recently wrote about his enthusiasm for chess I couldn’t resist the opportunity to invite him to talk to us on Perpetual Chess. In our interview, Joe discusses the beginnings of his interest in chess (his dad was a USCF expert.)  Joe then dives into topics including: the current state of his own chess game, why he has a "love-hate" relationship with the game, who his favorite chess YouTubers are, and the lessons that he has learned from his coach, FM Mikhail Perelshteyn. Whether in written word or on his Poscast, Joe is always entertaining and insightful, so it was a real thrill for me to talk chess with him! Please read on for more details and relevant links. 

Click here to download the Episode

0:00-   Joe tells us about the evolution of his interest in chess over the years. 

Mentioned: Read Joe’s recent blog post about chess here. Read his article about playing with NFL player Priest Holmes here. Read Joe’s famous, non-chess post about seeing Hamilton with his daughter, here. 

13:00- 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

Also be sure to subscribe to our How to Chess podcast ! More info here:

https://howtochess.com/

13:30- Joe is a big fan of chess YouTube. Who are Joe’s favorite chess YouTubers? 

Mentioned: Agadmator’s YouTube Channel, Perpetual Chess Episode 160 with Agadmator, GM Hikaru Nakamura, IM Eric Rosen, IM Levy Rozman, Levy’s Guess the Elo playlist here, GM Simon Williams’ Jobava London Chessable Course here

25:45- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by AImchess.com. Check out their site, and if you decide to subscribe use the code Perpetual30 to save 30%. 

26:30- We discuss the state of Joe’s own chess game. What are his strengths and weaknesses? 

Mentioned: FM Mikhail Perelshteyn, GM Eugene Perelshteyn, How to Chess Episode with GM Eugene Perelshteyn here, Joe’s game that we are discussing can be found  here

48:00- Joe’s most recent book is an excellent biography, The Life and Afterlife of Harry Houdini, Did he see any similarities between the magic and chess sub-cultures? 

Mentioned: The Baseball 100

53:00- If Joe were to write a feature about chess, what would he write? 

Episode 234- GM Jonathan Levitt

Photo of GM Levitt and and his old boss, GM Garry Kasparov, courtesy of Jonathan Levitt

GM Jonathan Levitt is a chess journalist, an author and a professional cricket bettor!   Jonathan is retired from competitive chess, but he has written a few great chess books, including co-authoring the classic  Secrets of Spectacular Chess, and Jonathan has recently released his first non-chess book,  Contemplating Comedy, which, as you might guess, is a meditation on the topic of humor. In this wide-ranging interview, we discuss Jonathan’s varied chess career, his transition to cricket betting, the upcoming World Chess Championship, and the intersection of chess and humor. There is lots to learn from Jonathan, so I hope you all enjoy this conversation. Please read on for many more details and relevant links. 

Click here to download the episode

London Chess Festival Info here!- 

https://www.englishchess.org.uk/chessfest-in-londons-trafalgar-square/

0:00- We tackle the age old question, “What constitutes chess talent?” This is a question that Jonathan grapples with in his excellent 1997 book, Genius in Chess. 

Mentioned: IM Malcolm Pein, Episode 20 with GM Timur Garyev, Book Recap #10- Talking Blindfold Chess with Jerry Wells, Episode 95 with Dr. Christopher Chabris

 14:00- Jonathan answers a question from the Perpetual Chess Patreon mailbag relating to ways he could potentially tweak his famed “Levitt question.” 

18:00- Jonathan tells the story of what he learned from studying and sharing a house with legendary GM Alexei Shirov. 

Episode 189 with GM Patrick Wolff 

25:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by AImchess.com. Check out their site, and if you decide to subscribe use the code Perpetual30 to save 30%. 

26:30- What were the key components to Jonathan’s own chess improvement path? 

Mentioned: GM Mikhail Botvinnik, Lasker’s Manual of Chess, Fischer’s 60 Memorable Games 

35:00- Secrets of Spectacular Chess by Jonathan and FM David Friedgood is a great book that shares a lot of brilliant endgame studies. Did endgame studies help Jonathan’s own game? 

41:00- Jonathan talks about the only “real job” when he worked for a few months for the original Kasparov Chess website. 

Mentioned: Mig Greengard, GM Vladimir Kramnik

43:00- 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

Also be sure to subscribe to the How to Chess podcast, more info here:

https://howtochess.com/

44:00- How did Jonathan’s chess background help him become a professional cricket bettor? What does his work entail? 

Mentioned: Episode 57 with GM Pascal Charbonneau 

53:00-Jonathan’s newest book, Contemplating Comedy is a meditation on what makes things funny. Does Jonathan think chess players are funnier than non-chess players? Does he have any good chess jokes? 

Mentioned: GM Tony Miles, GM Nigel Davies, GM Nigel Short, GM Yasser Seirawan, GM Benjamin Finegold, GM Jan Gustafsson 

1:04:00- What were Jonathan’s interactions with Kasparov like? 

Mentioned: Magnus Carlsen, GM Bobby Fischer 

1:09:00- What are Jonathan’s thoughts on the Carlsen-Nepomniachtchi match? 

1:11:00- Thanks so much to Jonathan for joining us! 

Here is how to keep up with him: 

Buy his books here: 

Amazon.com

Follow him on Twitter here: 

https://twitter.com/JonathanLevitt7?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor

You can email him directly at jonathanlevitt at btinternet.com 

Book Recap #17- Discussing "Zurich 1953" with FM Nate Solon, featuring GM Andy Soltis

Photo of Zurich 1953 Attendees, via the Zurich Chess Club

It has been a while, but Perpetual Chess is back with a blockbuster bonus book recap podcast. For this episode of Chess Books Recaptured, I am joined by FIDE Master Nate Solon to compare two books about one of the most famous chess tournaments of all time, the 1953 Zurich-Neuhausen Candidates tournament, (more commonly known as just “Zurich 1953.”)

GM David Bronstein’s book, Zurich International Chess Tournament, 1953 , is one of the most popular chess books of all time, and it is often recommended on this podcast. GM Miguel Najdorf’s tournament book, Zurich 1953: 15 Contenders for the World Chess Championship, is also considered a classic by many. Najdorf’s book may not be as well known as Bronstein’s book, due to the fact that it was only translated into English during the last decade.  So how do we compare the books? Do they live up to their reputation as instructional chess book classics? What made the tournament so special? What are we to make of the “ghost-writing” and “match-fixing” allegations which have come to light in recent decades? So much to discuss! We even feature a guest appearance by renowned author and GM Andy Soltis to help answer these questions! Please read on for lots more details and relevant links. 

Click here to download the episode

0:00- Why did we choose these two books?

Zurich International Chess Tournament, 1953 - Kindle edition by Bronstein, David. Humor & Entertainment Kindle eBooks @ Amazon.com.

Zurich 1953: 15 Contenders for the World Chess Championship - Kindle edition by Najdorf, Miguel. Humor & Entertainment Kindle eBooks @ Amazon.com.

Mentioned: GM Andy Soltis’ Soviet Chess 1917-1991, Chess24 series: The 50 Greatest Chess Players of all Time, featuring GMs Jan Gustafsson and GM Peter Heine Nielsen, GM Genna Sosonko’s Smylov on the Couch, Boris Samoilovich Vainstein (author, collaborator of David Bronstein)

20:00- 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

Also be sure to subscribe to Chessable’s new podcast focused on chess improvement How to Chess (hosted by me.) More info here:  

https://howtochess.com/

21:00- GM Andy Soltis joins the show to share his perspective on why he thinks these books are so famous. 

Mentioned: Juan Perón,, Vasily Smyslov, GM Yuriy Averbakh, GM Alexander Kotov, IM Lev Aronin, GM Bobby Fischer, GM Ian Nepomniatchtchi, GM Sergei Karjakin, You can preorder Andy’s upcoming book here:

Smyslov, Bronstein, Geller, Taimanov and Averbakh: A Chess Multibiography with 220 Games: Soltis, Andrew: 9781476677934: Amazon.com: Books

42:00- 

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

42:30- For what level chess fans are these books most beneficial? How do the books compare?

Mentioned: IM Christof Sielecki video looking at the analysis of Zurich 1953:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EHCE68qr5oQ

John Watson’s review of the Zurich 1953 books:

https://theweekinchess.com/john-watson-reviews/john-watson-book-review-106-zurich-1953-by-najdorf   Episode 46 with IM John Watson 

54:00- We share a few choice quotes from both books.

1:03:00- Who wrote Bronstein’s book? Bronstein or his friend Boris Vainstein? Is it important?

Mentioned: GM Genna Sosonko’s The Rise and Fall of David Bronstein

1:07:00- We finally dive deeper into the allegations that the Soviet government ordered match- fixing by the Soviet players

Mentioned: Chesscafe.com, GM Yuri Averbakh, Taylor Kingston, Taimanov vs. Smyslov 

1:21:00- Thanks so much to Nate for donating so much time! Tune in next time for a recap of My System with IM Christof Sielecki. 

Support Chess in Slums  here: 

https://gofund.me/61ae63d6

Hear Tunde on the Perpetual Chess Episode 219 here: 

https://open.spotify.com/episode/2a57aGslpbGW08KozHQ2ih?si=Yg9RZqpgRMqonYQhGcBbOA&dl_branch=1

You can subscribe to Nate’s free email newsletter here:

https://zwischenzug.substack.com/

Follow Nate on Twitter here:

https://twitter.com/natesolon

Lichess Study with Selected Games Here:

https://lichess.org/study/pCrnDQxs/o0AoddYo

Photo in middle of the participants courtesy of the Zurich Chess Club

Episode 233- IM Levy Rozman returns

IM Levy Rozman a/k/a “GothamChess” is a chess commentator, Twitch streamer, and, of course, creator of one of the most popular Chess YouTube channels in the World. His channel has seen explosive growth since his prior visit to Perpetual Chess, one year ago. It recently surpassed 1 million subscribers and is still growing quickly! In our conversation, Levy reflects on the success of his channel, and shares lots of advice for other aspiring content creators. We also discuss his recent return to competitive chess. Levy recently competed in the National Open in Las Vegas. He had pretty good results over the board, but perhaps more surprisingly, the videos analyzing his tournament games proved to be amongst his most popular ever! Why does he think that is? Will his comeback and pursuit of the Grandmaster title continue? Will he ever stop speaking out on political issues? We tackle all of these questions and many more in this fun, wide-ranging conversation. Please read on for more details, timestamps, and relevant links.

Click here to download the Episode.

IM Levy Rozman a/k/a “GothamChess” is a chess commentator, Twitch streamer, and, of course, creator of one of the most popular Chess YouTube channels in the World. His channel has seen explosive growth since his prior visit to Perpetual Chess, one year ago. It recently surpassed 1 million subscribers and is still growing quickly! In our conversation, Levy reflects on the success of his channel, and shares lots of advice for other aspiring content creators. We also discuss his recent return to competitive chess. Levy recently competed in the National Open in Las Vegas. He had pretty good results over the board, but perhaps more surprisingly, the videos analyzing his tournament games proved to be amongst his most popular ever! Why does he think that is? Will his comeback and pursuit of the Grandmaster title continue? Will he ever stop speaking out on political issues? We tackle all of these questions and many more in this fun, wide-ranging conversation. Please read on for more details, timestamps, and relevant links. 

0:00- We begin by doing a post-mortem on Levy’s recent return to over-the-board “OTB” chess. How does Levy reflect on his performance in the recently completed National Open in Las Vegas? 

11:00- Levy answers a Patreon mailbag question, relating to whether making videos during a tournament is distracting, and why he thinks his game recap videos were so popular (often with more than 400,000 views per episode)!

The first of Levy’s game recapps from Vegas is here: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qqNenU-sQZI

His recap of his game with IM Christopher Yoo is here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EPBLVuVk1zw

Also mentioned: GM Alex Grischuk, Czech Open, GM Wojciech Moranda, FM Kyron Griffith 

25:30- With so much content coming out, what steps has Levy taken to avoid burnout? 

29:30- What aspects of his chess game does Levy think he needs to work on? 

34:00- 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

Also be sure to subscribe to Chessable’s new podcast focused on chess improvement How to Chess (hosted by me), more info here:

https://howtochess.com/

35:00- Levy delves into some of the key decisions behind his YouTube channel’s huge growth in the past year. 

Mentioned: IM Eric Rosen, Agadmator, Guess the Elo, Kasparov vs. the World Video- 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZOrLfEZav14, Hanging Pawns YouTube, Mato Jelic YouTube, Kevin Durant, Dewa Kipas, WGM Irene Sukander 

50:00- Levy answers another question from a Patreon subscriber, relating to explaining his YouTube success. 

53:00 Another Patreon question- “What advice does Levy have for new chess streamers? “

Mentioned: Agadmator, GM Daniel King, IM John Bartholomew, GM Hikaru Nakamura, Mr. Beast, TierZoo, Daily Dose of Chess

1:01:00- What encounters with celebrities has Levy had as a result of his success?

Mentioned: Levy’s lesson with Gordon Hayward, Joe Posnanski’s blog post about chess is here:

https://joeposnanski.substack.com/p/chess

1:03:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by AImchess.com. Check out their site, and if you decide to subscribe use the code Perpetual30 to save 30%. 

1:04:00- Levy made a few enemies with this tweet, Does he stand by the sentiment? We also discuss Levy’s penchant for tweeting about politics. 

Mentioned: GM Daniel King, GM Ben FInegold 

1:17:00- Levy also has been an outspoken advocate for helping to foster a more supportive atmosphere for women in chess. How did this issue come to his attention? 

1:24:00- How is Levy’s girlfriend’s game progressing? 

1:27:00- Has Levy made any big purchases in the wake of his recent success?

Mentioned: Joe Rogan podcast, Magnus Carlsen 

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

Episode 232- James Altucher returns

Photo courtesy of James Altucher

James Altucher is a best-selling author, popular business podcast host, entrepreneur, USCF Master and adult improver! I last interviewed James back in October of 2017. At the time, James had some fun stories to tell about his chess background, but he wasn’t actively working on his chess. As it has for many people, that has changed in the past year. In the wake of the Queen’s Gambit boom, James’ love for chess is back in full bloom. He has been training 3-4 hours a day and hopes to return to competitive chess soon. In addition to his chess expertise, James is a keen student of adult learning who has interviewed experts in the field, such as Anders Ericsson and Angela Duckworth, among others. James gives some great advice on how to approach chess improvement and shares what he has learned from working 1 on 1 with coaches like IM Eric Rosen, and GM Jesse Kraai. James also offers some actionable advice for aspiring content creators, and he asks me a few questions about how Perpetual Chess has been affected by the pandemic. As always, please read on for lots more details, timestamps and relevant links.  

Click here to download the Episode

0:00- I am pleased to announce that Perpetual Chess is joining the Blue Wire Podcast Network! Blue Wire is a fast growing network of sports, comedy and lifestyle podcasts, and Perpetual Chess is the first chess podcast to sign on with them. More information about Blue Wire Podcasts here: 

https://www.bluewirepods.com/

2:00- James rejoins the show, and we dive right into James’ recent chess studies.. 

Mentioned:

Perpetual Chess Episode 42 with James Altucher

 The James Altucher Episode 667 with Jen Shahade

The James Altucher show Episode 716 with Garry Kasparov 

IM Eric Rosen, GM Jesse Kraai 

Perpetual Chess Podcast Episode 182 with IM Willy Hendriks

Perpetual Chess Podcast Episode 213 with IM Greg Shahade 

Perpetual Chess Podcast Episode 11 with GM Alex Lenderman 

The Woodpecker Method by GM Axel Smith 

Chess Structures by GM Mauricio Flores Rios 

19:45- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by AImchess.com. Check out their site, and if you decide to subscribe use the code Perpetual30 to save 30%. 

20:30- How does James incorporate spaced repetition of tactics into hi s chess study? 

32:00- 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

Also be sure to subscribe to Chessable’s new chess improvement focused podcast, How to Chess (hosted by me), more info here:

https://howtochess.com/

32:30- I ask James, whether it is as intimidating to interview GM Garry Kasparov as it is to play against him. 

Mentioned: GM Michael Wilder, Episode 215 with Vishnu Sreekumar

37:00- We discuss another highly instructive book, GameChanger by GM Mathew Sadler, and WIM Natasha Regan 

46:00- James asks me- What have I learned from interviewing so many adult improvers?

Mentioned: Episode 231 With Braden Laughlin, GM Daniel Naroditsky, GM Sam Shankland’s Banter Blitz Videos, Van Perlo’s Endgame Tactics, The Modern Tiger 

1:01:00- James asks me: how were the download numbers for Perpetual Chess affected by the Queen’s Gambit?

Mentioned: Episode 229 with GM Davorin Kuljasevic, Episode 44 with GM Jesse Kraai, GM Ben Finegold, IM Greg Shahade, WGM Jen Shahade, FM Mike Shahade 

1:12:30- How close does James think podcasts are to their growth peak? + some helpful content creation advice

Mentioned: Kevin Kelly- “Don’t Just Be the Best, Be the Only” 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vincGfoF8FA

1:15:00- Thanks so much to James for rejoining the show! Here is how to keep up with him:

Buy his latest book here: Amazon.com: Skip the Line: The 10,000 Experiments Rule and Other Surprising Advice for Reaching Your Goals eBook: Altucher, Jamhttps://jamesaltucher.com/es: Books

Twitter: https://twitter.com/jaltucher

Website: https://jamesaltucher.com/

The James Altucher show- https://open.sp

Bonus- Introducing The How to Chess Podcast!

While Perpetual Chess catches its breath, I invite you all to check out my new podcast/YouTube show.

How to Chess is an adult improver focused collaboration with Chessable that will be a rapid-fire weekly podcast devoted to chess improvement and study habits.

Here is episode 1, with GM Eugene Perelshteyn teaching us how to Limit Our Blunders. I hope you all find it helpful!

You can make sure you don’t miss and episode by subscribing to Chessable’s YouTube channel.

How to Chess is also available in audio-only on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, and should be on all podcast platforms soon.

Click here to download the episode

Episode 231- Braden Laughlin (Adult Improver Series)

 Click here to Download the Episode

My guest on this week’s adult improver edition of Perpetual Chess is Braden Laughlin. Braden is a 22 year old Canadian chess enthusiast who has seen robust gains in the first few years of his chess development. Braden went from 0 to 1750 (Canadian rating) in his first 16 months of chess!  In the subsequent 2.5 years he has continued to get stronger, and now has an online blitz rating peak of over 2100!  Not bad for four years work! How did he do it? As you will hear, Braden has an approach that is wholly different from any other adult improver that has appeared on Perpetual Chess. Braden has taken full advantage of all of the great free chess content on YouTube, and is also a big proponent of playing tons of games, and trying to derive a lesson from each game. For many more tips, as well as some background about Braden as a video editor and recently hired Chessable employee please check out our interview. As always, lots more details, timestamps and relevant links can be found below. 

0:00- How to Chess Podcast info from your host Ben: 

Coming soon to its own feed, How to Chess feeds for Spotify, Apple Podcsts, YouTube, etc. and will be linked here once available. 

Meanwhile the first few episodes will also be made available on this very Perpetual Chess feed for you to check out. 

For any how to chess related questions you’d like answered please email howtochess at chessable.com 

6:00- Braden joins the show and digs into his chess background and his early steps in chess improvement. 

Mentioned: Chess Network’s YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCDOQrpqLqKVcTCKzqarxLg

Also mentioned: IM John Bartholomew- Climbing the Rating Ladder Playlist

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U2huVf1l4UE&list=PLl9uuRYQ-6MCBnhtCk_bTZsD8GxeWP6BV

Also mentioned: GM Yasser Seirawan, The St. Louis Chess Club’s YouTube Channel:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCM-ONC2bCHytG2mYtKDmIeA

Also mentioned: Jonathan Rowson’s Chess for Zebras

18:00- Braden discusses how chess served as an escape for him when he faced some physical and mental health challenges: 

21:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Aimchess.com. Check it out for free, and then if you subscribe use the promo code Perpetual30

22:00- How did Braden balance actual chess playing with the study he did and chess videos that he consumed? 

27:00- What tips does Braden have for learning positional chess concepts? 

Mentioned: ChessNetwork, IM John Bartholomew, Simple Chess by GM Michael Stean, Simple Chess Podcast, Book Recap #13, Episode 213 with IM Greg Shahade   

33:00- How much time did  Braden spend working on tactics? 

GM Roman Dzindzichashvili 

38:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com. You can check out their latest offerings here:

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

39:00- Has Braden’s study approach changed as he has reached higher levels? 

45:30- Braden answers a question from the Patreon mailbag relating to how the OTB tournament situation will compare in Spain to North America. (Braden is moving to Spain soon) 

48:00- Patreon question: “Did Braden use any Chessable resources to help his chess improvement?”

Mentioned: 100 Endgames You Must Know, Braden’s video about the longest possible chess game is here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D5DXJxR3Uig

Mentioned: IM Eric Rosen, IM Kostya Kavutskiy 

56:00- Braden discusses how he got into creating Youtube videos. 

Mentioned: Good Blood Youtube channel:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC55OV4HSSKJEthG4ulsKkyw

Zelda video-

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GyUcwsjyd8Q

1:02:00- Thanks so much to Braden for sharing the details of his unique climb up the rating ranks!

Subscribe to his YouTube channel here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D5DXJxR3Uig

Follow him on Twitter here:

https://twitter.com/Braden_Laughlin

Episode 230- WGM Irene Sukander

Photo by IM Eric Rosen

WGM and IM Irene Sukander is one of the top players in Indonesia, the two-time Asian Women’s Chess Champion, and she earned a Grandmaster norm at the Asian Continental in 2012 .Although her numerous chess accomplishments required an investment of time, Irene did not shirk her studies. She studied English literature in Indonesia, and Irene earned a Masters Degree in International Relations at chess powerhouse Webster University in St. Louis. Irene was already a well-known and accomplished chess player, but we saw her fame explode when due to an unusual  set of circumstances she participated in a live, high stakes chess match with 1.25 million online viewers!  Irene reflects on that match, and the ways it changed her life both for better and for worse. We also discuss Irene’s current chess goals, the unique chess culture in Indonesia, ways to popularize chess for women, and many more topics. There is much to learn from Irene, so I hope you enjoy this conversation as I did. Please read on for more details, timestamp and related links. 

 Click here to download the Episode

0:00- We begin by discussing the latest on Irene’s chess game. Is she studying? Is she planning on chasing the GM title? This segment also touches on chess in Indonesia. 

Mentioned: Ray Robson, Eric Rosen, Ilya Nyzhnik, Le Quang Liem, Susan Polgar

Ladies Knight Podcast interview with Jen Shahade:

https://open.spotify.com/episode/108CgkISEvilraOmayh887?si=9df44dab494b4bb1

Biel Open, 

Jakarta Post article about Irene:

https://www.thejakartapost.com/life/2021/04/09/meet-irene-kharisma-sukandar-the-grandmaster-thrust-into-the-spotlight.html

10:00- Irene was a bit of a prodigy as a child. She delves into the intense study regimen that helped her earn her chess success. 

Mentioned: GM Mikhail Botvinnik, Chess Informant’s, Hort-Karpov 1981

27:00- Irene answers a question from the Perpetual CHess Patreon mailbag relating to ways that more women can be inspired to pursue chess. 

Mentioned: GM Judit Polgar, GM Maia Chiburdanidze, GM Hou Yifan, GM Ju Wenjun, GM Alexandra Kosteniuk

33:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com. You can check out their latest offerings here:

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

34:00- Irene reflects on the experience of participating in the most viewed chess match of all time, an event which came about under quite unusual circumstances. 

Mentioned: IM Levy Rozman a/k/a Gotham Chess , Dewa Kipas, Here is Peter Doggers’ Chess.com story- Cheating Controversy Results in Most Watched Chess Event of All Time-

https://www.chess.com/news/view/most-watched-chess-stream-in-history-dewa-kipas

43:00- What content advice has Irene been given from her friend IM Eric Rosen? 

Mentioned: Episode 36 with IM Eric Rosen, Episode 130 with IM Eric Rosen

47:00- Patreon question- was the $14,000 Irene received for her match with Dewa Kipas her biggest chess payday? She also reflects a bit more on what she will remember from this landmark chess match. 

58:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Aimchess.com. Check it out for free, and then, if you decide to subscribe, use the PromoCode Chess30 to save 30%.

1:01:00- We talk a bit about Irene’s life and interests away from the board. 

Mentioned: Reykjavik Open Chess Tournament- https://www.reykjavikopen.com/, Kopi Luwak 

1:08:00- Thanks so much to Irene for joining the podcast Here are the best ways to keep up with her:

Instagram-

https://www.instagram.com/irene_sukandar/?hl=en

Twitter- https://twitter.com/irene_sukandar?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor

Twitch- https://t.co/tIJGJkZzLp?amp=1

Chess.com 

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

https://www.patreon.com/perpetualchess

Episode 229- GM Davorin Kuljasevic

Photo courtesy of GM Davorin Kuljasevic

 Click here to download the Episode

GM Davorin Kuljsevic is an  author, a trainer and, of course, an accomplished chess player. Davorin has won several international tournaments and competed with the Croatian National team. As a trainer, he has coached the Finland Men’s and Women’s National Chess teams,and he has taught many titled players. In recent years, Davorin is becoming best known for his books. His first book, Beyond Material, helps players learn to sacrifice for initiative and to play more dynamically. Davorin’s new book, How to Study Chess On Your Own: Creating a Plan that Works and Sticking to it, is an expansive and instructive book that provides both chess instruction and study plans for the ambitious improver. The book, and our interview, contain useful tips on how to properly use engines, improve tactics, structure study time, and lots more. Please read on for more details and relevant timestamps. 

0:00- We dive right into Davorin’s new book, How to Study Chess On Your Own: Creating a Plan that Works and Sticking to it . What advice can be gleaned from this impressive book? 

Mentioned: GM Efstratios Grivas, IM Lawrence Trent, GM Daniel Fridman, Kuljasevic-Fridman 2013,  GM Richard Rapport, GM Judit Polgar, GM Veselin Topalov

 12:00- Davorin’s book advocates a very ambitious study plan.  Can it be adjusted for those who have less time to devote to chess study?

Mentioned: Pump Up Your Rating by GM Axel Smith, Berlin Wall by GM John Cox  

18:00- Davorin answers a few Patreon mailbag questions, including, “Is there a minimum amount of study one must to do to expect chess improvement?” 

Mentioned: IM Cyrus Lakdawala 

24:00- Patreon mailbag question:  “How should adult improvers measure progress?”

28:00-Patreon mailbag question:  “Can humans use non GM strength engines as playing partners?” 

Mentioned: ChessDojo, Episode 215 with Dr. Vishnu Sreekumar 

31:00- How should one properly use chess engines?

James Altucher Episode 716 with Garry Kasparov 

37:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com. You can check out their latest offerings here:

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

38:00- How can we break the spell of excessive “materialism” in chess, and learn to sacrifice for dynamic compensation? 

Mentioned: Beyond Material by GM Davorin Kuljasevic,  Gamechanger by GM Mathew Sadler and WIM Natasha Regan, Artemiev-Motylev 2015, Mastering Positional Sacrifices by IM Merijn van Delft 

46:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Aimchess.com. Check it out for free, and then, if you decide to subscribe, use the PromoCode Chess30 to save 30%.

49:00- How would Davorin ramp up for a tournament if he were getting ready to compete? 

Mentioned: WGM Iva Videnova,  

51:00- What was it like to do a Chess TV show in Croatia? How is the chess culture there? Mentioned:  Episode 160 with Agadmator, Episode 117 with Stjepian Tomic aka Hanging Pawns, Episode 223 with Dr. Luka Popov, GM Alojzije Janković

54:30- Davorin discusses his experience studying in the US at University of Texas at Dallas, and at Texas Tech University 

Mentioned: IM John Bartholomew, IM Dmitry Schneider, FM Andrei Zaremba 

58:00- Davorin names a few of his favorite chess authors

Mentioned: IM Mark Dvoretsky, GM Jacob Aagaard, GM Boris Gelfand, Dvoretsky’s Endgame Manual  

1:02:-- Thanks so much to Davorin for joining the show. Link below for where to reach him and  purchase his books:

Buy from New in Chess Publishing (including ebook):

https://www.newinchess.com/how-to-study-chess-on-your-own

Buy from Amazon:

How to Study Chess on Your Own: Creating a Plan that Works… and Sticking to it! - Kindle edition by Kuljasevic, Davorin. Humor & Entertainment Kindle eBooks @ Amazon.com.

Reach Davorin here:

https://lichess.org/coach/GrandmasterThinking

Episode 228- GM Ben Finegold returns

GM Ben Finegold with Karen Boyd, his wife, and co-founder of the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Atlanta. Photo via the CCSCATL Facebook Page

This week we are rejoined by the always entertaining Twitch streamer,YouTube creator and accomplished Grandmaster,  Ben Finegold! Ben was an early guest of Perpetual Chess, back in 2017. In the subsequent years, Ben has seen his online following grow rapidly, and The Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Atlanta (which he co-founded with his wife Karen Boyd)   continues to find its footing despite the pandemic. In this interview, Ben discusses the latest in “Twitch Chess” including why he thinks he has found an audience, and why successful Twitch streamers will inevitably occasionally find themselves amidst controversies. Ben also shares some great stories from his own journey to the GM title, his early encounters with the Polgar sisters, and some chess history wisdom regarding Magnus Carlsen, Garry Kasparov, Mikhail Tal and many others. It is always illuminating and amusing to get to chat with Ben, please read on for all of the details, relevant links and timestamps. 

Click here to download the episode

0:00- We begin by hearing the story of how Ben earned the GM title at the relatively late age of 40. 

Mentioned: Episode 9 with GM Ben Finegold, Episode 52 with GM Ben Finegold, Episode 271 “IM to GM special episode” with IMs Lawrence Trent, Sean Nagle and Attila Turzo, Bill Goichberg, Susan Polgar, Sevan Muradian, FM Peter Giannatos, GM Vishy Anand, GM Garry Kasparov, Albert Pujols, Robert Parish, GM Viktor Korchnoi, Shaquille O’Neal, Mike Tyson

18:00- Since Ben wasn’t a big book reader, to what does he attribute his chess accomplishments? 

Mentioned: GM Bobby Fischer, WGM Jenn Shahade, Episode 223 with Adult Improver Dr. Luka Popov 

24:30- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Aimchess.com. Check it out for free, and then, if you decide to subscribe, use the PromoCode Chess30 to save 30%.

25:30- A Patreon supporter of the podcast asks:  As someone with a popular chess center, what advice would Ben give for opening a venue in a major city? 

Mentioned: Episode 185 with IM Stuart Rachels, Episode 201 with FM Peter Giannatos 

Mentioned: The Queen’s Gambit, Silver Knights Enrichment 

41:30- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com. You can check out their latest offerings here:

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

42:00- Ben answers a Patreon mailbag question relating to the differences in playing style between GMs Magnus Carlsen and GM Garry Kasparov

Mentioned: HBO’s Real Sports featuring GM Fabiano Caruana:

https://www.youtube.om/watch?v=nbvrDspsGNU&feature=emb_imp_woyt

Also mentioned: Paul Morphy, GM Anatoly Karpov 

50:00- Ben had a few memorable games against the Polgar sisters. What were those experiences like?

Mentioned: FM Emory Tate , GM Roman Dzindichashvilli, J. Polgar-Finegold 1989, Finegold, Gelfand 1989, J. Polgar-Finegold 1990, Finegold-Susan Polgar 1990

56:00- Why does Ben think he has found an audience on Chess Twitch? How does he think about some recent controversies involving chess Twitch personalities? 

Mentioned: GM Jon Speelman, GM Hikaru Nakamura, GM Eric Hansen, The Botez Sisters, GM Fabiano Caruana, GM Aman Hambleton, IM John Bartholomew, IM Eric Rosen, IM Anna Rudolf, WFM Anna Cramling, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia 

1:10:00- Patreon mailbag question: Does Ben have plans to improve his Twitch clips? 

Mentioned: The Family Guy 

1:16:00- Patreon mailbag question: Which players of the past would have been good Twitch streamers? 

Mentioned: GM Ljubomir Ljubojević FM Emory Tate, GM Mikhail Tal, GM Alonso Zapata 

1:21:00- GM Ben Finegold was featured in Sasha Chapin’s entertaining book All the Wrong Moves. What were Ben’s experiences with Sasha like?

Mentioned: Episode 152 with Sasha Chapin, Howard Stern, George Stephonopoulos, 

1:26:00- Thanks, as always to Ben for joining the show. Here is how to keep up with him:

Twitch-

https://www.twitch.tv/gmbenjaminfinegold

Twitter- https://twitter.com/ben_finegold?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor

Ben’s Personal Youtube Channel-

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6EnFbK-P5q0zeaqI5yobKg

Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Atlanta Youtube Channel- 

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqLLqbclDQ6IQg39Wsgy-4w

Episode 227- WFM Maria Emelianova

Photo Courtesy of WFM Maria Emelianova

WFM Maria Emelianova a/k/a “Photochess” is a popular Twitch streamer, photographer, translator, and chess journalist. Maria often spends more than half of her time travelling to cover and help organize chess tournaments.   She has accumulated many memorable images and great stories from her time on the chess beat. To give an idea of her schedule, Maria worked on staff at the 2020-2021 FIDE Candidates in her native Yekaterinaburg, Russia, and she joined the podcast en route home from working at the Russian Team Championship in Sochi. 

In our conversation, Maria gave a first hand perspective on the Candidates Tournament, and we also  touched on Maria’s chess book recommendations.  We talked about  her career as a chess competitor, as well as stories from her life as a chess photographer and advice regarding chess photography, Twitch streaming, and much more. Please read on for timestamps, lots more details and links related to this fun conversation. 

Click here to download the episode

0:00- As an Yekaterinaburg native and resident, Maria was part of the FIDE Candidates staff. She describes what her work entailed and gives some behind-the-scenes info from the tournament. 

Mentioned: https://www.sima-land.ru/, WGM Leya Garifullina, GM Ian Nepomniatchtchi, GM Peter Leko, Lennart Ootes 

24:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com. You can check out their latest offerings here:

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

24:45- What are Maria’s favorite chess resources? 

Mentioned: My Great Predecessors , Decision Making in Major Piece Endings , Chess Life Magazine, IM Elizabeth Paehtz’s Twitch channel-

https://www.twitch.tv/ellipaehtz

32:30- Maria discusses her decision to play internationally for the United Kingdom, rather than Russia 

39:00-  Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Aimchess.com. Check it out for free, and then, if you decide to subscribe, use the PromoCode Chess30 to save 30%.

39:45- Maria reflects on her experiences as a Twitch streamer and shares some advice for other aspiring streamers and chess professionals. 

Mentioned: Twitch Streamer MrLlamaSC- 

https://www.twitch.tv/mrllamasc

Also Mentioned: Episode 180 with IM Levy Rozman, Episode 140 with GM Aman Hambleton

53:30- Maria tells the memorable story of her first gig as a chess photographer 

Mentioned: GM Alexander Motylev, Former FIDE President Kirsan Ilyumzhinov  

1:00:00- What makes for a good chess photo? Who are Maria’s favorite players to photograph?

Mentioned: GM Magnus Carlsen, GM Ian Nepomniatchtchi, GM Anton Korobov, GM Alexander Grischuk

1:07:30- Which of Maria’s 5 cats is most beloved by her Twitch viewers? 

1:13:00- Thanks so much to Maria for joining the show. Here is how you can keep up with her:

Twitch:

https://www.twitch.tv/photochess

Webpage:

 https://photochess.com/

Chess.com: 

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

Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/photochess/?hl=en

Twitter: 

https://twitter.com/photochess?lang=en

Reddit Photo Challenge:

https://www.reddit.com/r/photoshopbattles/comments/6kywwe/psbattle_world_chess_champion_receiving_golden/

Episode 226- Tim Krabbé

Photo Courtesy of Tim Krabbe

Tim Krabbé is a popular Dutch novelist who is probably best known for the cult cycling classic The Rider, and the book The Vanishing, which was adapted into film in both The Netherlands and the U.S. 

In chess circles, Tim is a strong player who was once among the top 20 in the Netherlands, and he was a competitor in two Dutch National Championships. He has written for New in Chess Magazine, and wrote a classic (out of print)  book called Chess Curiosities. Around the late 1990s and 2000s, Tim maintained an  amazing blog which tracked chess news, shared stories  and contained many noteworthy chess studies and records. Tim no longer updates the blog, but fortunately he maintains the archive, so that chess fans still can immerse themselves in it. Tim has accumulated some great stories from his interactions with legends like GMs Jan Timman, Garry Kasparov, and Vishy Anand. In our interview, he shares a few of the stories, assesses the chess boom, and shares his wisdom on the topics of writing, cycling, longevity, and of course, chess. Please read on for more details and relevant hyperlinks. 

 Click here to download the episode

0:00- We dive right into chess talk, as Tim shares his thoughts on the FIDE Candidates tournament, and discusses his current relationship with chess. 

Mentioned: GM Anish Giri, GM Ian Nepomniatchtchi, Babson tasks , Episode 210 with Tom Vanderbilt. See Tom Vanderbilt’s profile of Tim Krabbé here- 

https://www.bicycling.com/news/a20026829/think-you-understand-the-rider-think-again/

09:45- Tim made a comeback to cycling in his 60’s, and still works hard on his writing at the age of 78.   What advice does he have for staying mentally and physically robust? This segues into Tim’s thoughts on the relative differences between chess, cycling, and racing. 

16:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com. You can check out their latest offerings here:

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

16:45- Tim answers a few questions from The Patreon mailbag relating to whether there are any similarities between cycling and chess. 

Mentioned: Marc Cavendish, GM Simen Agdestein, Tim’s article about Simen is here:

https://timkr.home.xs4all.nl/chess2/agd_eng.htm

23:30- Tim tells the memorable story of how Bobby Fischer’s achievement’s deterred him from pursuing professional chess. He then tells a few stories derived from his attending the Fischer-Spassky World Championship in 1972. 

Game 1 here- 

https://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1044722

Also mentioned: GM Friðrik Ólafsson

30:30- Patreon mailbag question: “How important does Tim think exercise is for competing at chess?” 

34:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Aimchess.com. Check it out for free, and then, if you decide to subscribe, use the PromoCode Chess30 to save 30%.

35:00- What is Tim’s most cherished chess memory? What sites does he read? 

Mentioned: Leonid Yarosh’s Babson Task- more info here: 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Babson_task

Also mentioned: Chessbase.com, Chessvibes.com 

40:30- What are Tim’s favorite chess books?

Mentioned: The King by GM Jan Hein Donner, Hein Donner, The Biography, The Life and Games of Mikhail Tal 

44:00- What does Tim think about the future of chess?

Mentioned: GM Jan Timman, Read Tim’s chess short story, Master Jacobson, here:

https://timkr.home.xs4all.nl/text/jacobson.htm

49:00- What advice does Tim have for how to tell a good story? Who are his favorite novelists?

Mentioned: Lev Tolstoy, Fyodor Dostoevsky, Ivan Turgenev 

53:00- Tim describes a memorable interaction with legendary World Champion Garry Kasparov. 

Mentioned: Kasparov vs. Piket 1995, Tim’s piece A Walk with Garry Kasparov:

https://timkr.home.xs4all.nl/text/kaspeng.html

Thanks so much to Tim for sharing his stories and wisdom!

Read his archive here:https://timkr.home.xs4all.nl/chess/chess.html 

Purchase his books here: https://www.amazon.com/Tim-Krabbe/e/B000APEA88%3Fref=dbs_a_mng_rwt_scns_share

You can reach him at timkr At xs4all.nl

Episode 225- GM Axel Smith

This week I am joined by one of my favorite modern authors, Grandmaster Axel Smith. Axel is a two-time Swedish Chess Olympiad member, who is probably best known for co-authoring the 2017 book, The Woodpecker Method, with his fellow grandmaster Hans Tikkanen. Axel has written a few other books, which are excellent guides for more advanced players. They are Pump Up Your Rating, e3 Poison, and his latest offering from Quality Chess, Street Smart Chess. In our interview we discuss all of these books, and touch on topics like the origins of The Woodpecker Method, Axel’s own experience with using spaced repetition, and his improvement advice for ambitious club players. There are lots of useful nuggets in our conversation, so I hope you will enjoy it. Please read on for more details, timestamps, and relevant links.

Click here to download the episode

0:00- We begin by discussing what is probably GM Axel Smith’s most popular book, the famed The Woodpecker Method, which he co-wrote with GM Hans Tikkanen. The book is available from Amazon and is very popular on Chessable. 

Mentioned: Book Recap #6 discussing Woodpecker Method with Neal Bruce,  Episode 187 with Christopher Chabris, Episode 216 with Dr. Jana Krivec 

15:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com. You can check out their latest offerings here: 

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

16:00- In Pump Up Your Rating, Axel listed the 4 key components of chess improvement: “ (1) analyzing your games and making a ‘list of mistakes;” (2) using a De la Maza-esque program to study tactics; (3) doing serious opening work via the creation of ‘opening files’ in ChessBase; and (4) mastering approximately 100 key theoretical endgames.” 

Does he still think this is the best approach?

Mentioned: 100 Endgames You Must Know 

20:45- In e3 Poison, Axel mentioned that we may be entering a post theoretical era- what does he mean by that? 

Mentioned: GM Anish Giri 

24:30- What players does Axel look up to?

Mentioned: GM Stellan Brynell, GM Ulf Andersson, YouTube Video- Play Like Ulf Andersson -

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YDo--EPHnfc

27:00-Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Aimchess.com. Check it out for free, and then, if you decide to subscribe, use the PromoCode Chess30 to save 30%.

28:30 What is the theme of Axel’s newest book, Street Smart Chess? 

Mentioned: Forward Chess, Street Smart Chess, Free book excerpt from Quality Chess here:

http://www.qualitychess.co.uk/ebooks/StreetSmartChess-excerpt.pdf

GM David Navara, GM Aryan Tari, GM Baskaran Adhiban, GM Laurent Fressinet,GM Peter Heine Nielsen, GM Magnus Carlsen, My Chess World, The Secret Ingredient by Jan Markos and GM David Navara 

39:45- What is the chess culture like in Sweden? 

41:00- What are some of Axel’s favorite books?

Mentioned: Learn from the Legends, Move First Think Later, On the Origin of the Good Moves 

46:00- Axel Smith shares some life and chess advice before departing. You can keep up with him via his website:

http://www.schackstudion.se/

Episode 224 - GM Ruslan Ponomariov

Photo courtesy of GM Ruslan Ponomariov

This week’s guest is none other than former FIDE World Champion, 2 time Olympiad Gold Medalist, and 2011 Ukrainian National Champion, GM Ruslan Ponomariov! With the FIDE Candidates having concluded it was a great time to hear the thoughts of this genial super grandmaster. In our conversation, Ruslan puts the 2020-2021 FIDE Candidates into historical context, shares his perspective on GM Ian Nepomniachtchi’s victory, and then assesses the 2021 World Championship matchup between Nepomniachtchi and GM Magnus Carlsen. We then delve into GM Ponomariov’s storied career. How does he reflect on having been the youngest FIDE World Champion ever? What is he up to these days? We discuss this and much more in this fascinating, wide-ranging interview. Please read on for lots more details and timestamps.

Click here to download the Episode

0:00-  Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com. You can check out their latest offerings, inclluding IM Christof Sielecki's course on the Pirc defense here: 

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

2:00- We begin, of course, by discussing the just-ended FIDE Candidates Tournament. What were GM Ponomariov’s impressions of the FIDE Candidates Tournament?

Mentioned: Curacao 1962: The Battle That Shook the Chess World, GM Garry Kasparov, GM Alexei Dreev, Alexander Grischuk, GM Garry Kasparov, Rublevsky vs. Ponomariov 2007 

20:00-  How does he assess GM IanIan Nepomniachtchi’’s chances  vs. Magnus Carlsen? 

Mentioned: Bwin World Championship Odds- https://sports.bwin.com/en/sports/events/world-championship-2021-11184631

GM Fabiano Caruana, GM Peter Heine Nielsen

26:00- Ruslan answers a question from the Perpetual Chess Patreon mailbag: “How would a world championship team typically prepare for a match?”

Ruslan describes his own experiences working with Magnus Carlsen. 

Mentioned: The Anand Files, GM Wang Hao, GM Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, GM Sergei Karjakin, GM Boris Gelfand 

37:00- Patreon mailbag question: “How does Ruslan place his FIDE World Champion title within historical context?” 

Mentioned: GM Viswanathan Anand, GM Magnus Carlsen, GM Bobby Fischer 

43:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Aimchess.com. Check it out for free, and then, if you decide to subscribe, use the PromoCode Chess30 to save 30%.

44:30- Patreon mailbag question: “Does Ruslan have any professional chess plans outside of continuing to compete?” 

Mentioned: Dortmund Chess Days 2021

 51:30- Patreon question: “Does GM Ponomariov have any suggestions for how to avoid information overload?”

Mentioned: GM Noel Studer’s blog- https://t.co/4zQNhZV958?amp=1

56:00- GM Ponomariov discusses some of the chess-related projects on which he is working.

Mentioned: German Bundeslga, GM Vladimir Baklan, GM Pavel Elianov, GM Yuriy Kuzubov, Russian Language Academy of Olympic Champions website here: 

Академия Олимпийских Чемпионов

1:01:00- Does Ruslan have any good stories involving GM Vasyl Ivanchuk? Has he ever played him in checkers? 

Mentioned: Ivanchuk interview with Fiona Steil Antoni: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RGpT9el_9i8, GM Peter Heine Nielsen, GM Alexander Morozevich, GM Tiger Hillarp Person, GM Emanuel Lasker, GM Anatoly Karpov, GM Mikhail  Podharetz 

1:15:00- Twitter question from GM Denes Boros: “Is there anything GM Ponomariov would have done differently from his time at the top of the chess world?”

Mentioned: GM Yuriy Kryvoruchko , GM Vladimir Topolov, GM Viswanathan Anand, GM Wang Hao 

1:23:00- In view of the fact that Ruslan lives in Spain, I asked whether he does any chess work there, or is it primarily on the road, and in his native Ukraine? 

1:29:00- In 2008, GM Ponomariov told Chessbase.com of his desire to travel through the Mongolian steppes. Has he taken that trip yet? 

1:32:00- Thanks so much to GM Ponomariov for sharing his time and reflections. Here is how you can keep up with him:

Twitch:

https://www.twitch.tv/ruslanponomariov

Twitter:

https://twitter.com/Ponomariov?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor

Book Recap: Discussing Logical Chess Move by Move with Barry Katz

Welcome to another bonus book recap podcast, also known as Chess Books Recaptured! This month’s book of choice is one of the most popular beginner-oriented chess books of all time, Irving Chernev’s Logical Chess Move by Move. My guest co-host this month is Barry Katz. Barry is a Brooklyn based father of 4, and college writing instructor who discovered chess in recent years through the interest of his son. 

Irving Chernev has left quite a legacy as an accomplished and popular writer of 20 chess books. Logical Chess Move by Move was first published in 1957, so some have suggested it is outdated, but both Barry and I find it to be very readable and instructive, and an excellent book for those looking to understand the timeless principles of master level chess play. Please read on for lots more details, timestamps and relevant links. 

Click here to download the Episode

0:00- Barry shares a bit about his background, and we discuss why we chose to discuss Logical Chess Move by Move by Irving Chernev 

Guest co-host Barry Katz

Mentioned: Facebook Chess Books Collectors Group, GM Max Illingworth, GM Andy Soltis, Brian Karen, World Chess Hall of Fame, Chernev tribute: 

https://worldchesshof.org/hof-inductee/irving-chernev

Also Mentioned: Episode 221 with Chris Callhan, Lichess Study Featuring Logical Chess Move by Move: https://lichess.org/study/Wn7aMkPy, Jen Shahade, Mike Klein, Capablanca’s Best Chess Endings, The Most Instructive Games of Chess Ever Played 

The 1979 Chernev interview from the Chess Life and Review archive  can be found here:

http://uscf1-nyc1.aodhosting.com/CL-AND-CR-ALL/CL-ALL/1979/1979_All.pdf

12:45- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com. You can check out their latest offerings here: 

 Chessable.com

13:45- Is Logical Chess Move by Move secretly a good guide to openings? What other move by move chess books are available on the market? 

Mentioned: The Scandinavian Defense, Understanding Chess Move by Move by GM John Nunn, Secrets of Modern Chess Strategy by IM John Watson, Episode 41 with GM Judit Polgar 

20:30- We share a few noteworthy quotes of Chernev discussing the common early moves of  chess games. 

Mentioned: IM Andras Toth, Girl vs. Wang Hao 2021 

32:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Aimchess.com. Check it out for free, and then if you decide to subscribe use the PromoCode Chess30 to save 30%.

33:30- We share a few more favorite quotes from the book. 

Mentioned: Dan Heisman, IM Eric Rosen, Jose Rauol Capablanca, Harry Pillsbury, GM Sam Shankland, Siegbert Tarrasch 

44:30- We discuss a couple of our favorite games from the podcast. 

Mentioned: Rubinstein-Salwe 1908, Tarrasch-Mieses 1916

48:00- What were our main chess improvement takeaways? 

Mentioned: GM Ben Finegold, Caruana-Vachier-Lagrave 2021, World’s Most Instructive Amateur Game Book by Dan Heisman, IM Cyrus Lakdawala 

59:00- Thanks so much to Barry Katz for helping out this month’s book recap. You can email him at: Iambarrykatz at gmail.com 

Mentioned: Subscribe to FM Nate Solon’s email newsletter here: Zwischenzug (substack.com), Bronstein’s Zurich 1953 book, Najdorf’s Zurich 1953 book

If you would like to help support Perpetual Chess, you can do so here:
Ben Johnson is creating Perpetual Chess Podcast | Patreon

Episode 223- Dr. Luka Popov (Adult Improver Series)

Photo courtesy of Dr. Luka Popov

My guest on the podcast is adult improver Dr. Luka Popov. Luka is a 39 year-old Croatian dad, theoretical physics Ph.D., software engineer and content creator. Luka started serious chess in 2017, and was primarily emphasizing over-the-board chess before the pandemic. Then he  switched to online chess, and  his Lichess rapid rating has gained about 250 points in the last 1.5 years. 

Luka shares a lot of his wisdom and experiences on his YouTube channel called “The Adult Chess Improver.”  As the channel and our interview make clear, Luka has quickly gained expertise in the topic of adult chess improvement, and our interview is filled with quality recommendations for like-minded players. Please read on for lots more details. 

Click here to download the episode

My guest on the podcast is adult improver Dr. Luka Popov. Luka is a 39 year-old Croatian dad, theoretical physics Ph.D., software engineer and content creator. Luka started serious chess in 2017, and was primarily emphasizing over-the-board chess before the pandemic. Then he  switched to online chess, and  his Lichess rapid rating has gained about 250 points in the last 1.5 years.

Luka shares a lot of his wisdom and experiences on his YouTube channel called “The Adult Chess Improver.”  As the channel and our interview make clear, Luka has quickly gained expertise in the topic of adult chess improvement, and our interview is filled with quality recommendations for like-minded players. Please read on for lots more details. 

0:00- Luka delves into his chess background. 

Mentioned: Agadmator, Hanging Pawns

12:00- Why does Luka think many titled players struggle to understand the plight of adult improvers? 

Mentioned: IM Andras Toth, Dr. Jana Krivec 

17:45- 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

18:30- Why is it important for improvers to try to acquire chess skills rather than gain chess knowledge?  

Mentioned: Neal Bruce 

26:00 What do Luka’s family and friends think of his chess hobby?

28:30- Luka answers a question from the Patreon mailbag relating to developing board visualization. 

Mentioned:: Jason Cigan, JJ Lang, Benedictine’s Basic Chess Patterns:

https://www.chessable.com/basic-chess-patterns-/course/46181/

Also Mentioned: Chesstempo, Perpetual Chess Book Recap of Woodpecker Method and Michael De La Maza’s Rapid Chess Improvement:

https://www.perpetualchesspod.com/new-blog/2020/4/17/bonus-pod-recapping-the-woodpecker-method-and-rapid-chess-improvement-with-neal-bruce

36:45- Patreon mailbag question: “What are the best ways to improve tactically and strategically respectively?” 

Mentioned: GM Jesse Kraai, IM John Bartholomew, IM Andras Toth, GM Jacob Aagaard’s Thinking Inside the Box 

43:00- Luka answers another Patreon question: “What is the best way to improve at endgames?”

Mentioned: 100 Endgames You Must Know, Positional Chess Handbook by FM Israel Gelfer 

45:30- Patreon question: “What advice does Luka have when it comes to setting goals?” 

50:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Aimchess.com. If you subscribe use the PromoCode Chess30 to save 30%. 

51:00- How does Luka think about the concept of “ceilings” in chess potential? 

55:30- What are Luka’s plans for tournaments as the pandemic recedes? 

1:01:00- What other hobbies does Luka have? 

1:05:00- Thanks so much to Dr. Popov for joining the show. 

Be sure to follow his YouTube channel here: 

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCChy0letCdw0KtnMnfAukLw

You can email him at drpopovchess at gmail.com - 

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Episode 222- GM Peter Svidler returns

Photo by Soboky via Wikimedia Commons

This week on Perpetual Chess, we are fortunate to get a return visit from the legendary commentator, Super GM, and now Chessable author, GM Peter Svidler! Peter talked with me a few days before he was set to depart for Yekaterinaburg, Russia. Yekaterinburg, of course, is where the FIDE Candidates Tournament will resume after being postponed amidst the Covid pandemic in March 2020. The tournament resumes on April 19, and the winner of the tournament will face GM Magnus Carlsen for the World Championship in November of 2021. As a competitor in prior Candidates Tournaments, and someone who is now assisting GM Kirill Alekseenko, one of the participants, it was amazing to hear GM Svidler’s perspective on the tournament. 

Of course, GM Svidler has also just released his much anticipated Chessable course, Lifetime Repertoires: Peter Svidler’s Grunfeld. We talked about how he researched this huge project, as well as what surprised him about the process of writing his first Chessable course. 

Lastly, we got lots of questions from supporters of the Perpetual Chess Podcast. GM Svidler tackled questions relating to his famed modesty, his plans for competing and commentating in 2021, and much more. Please read on for more details, timestamps, and relevant links. 

Click here to download the Episode  

0:00- 

We begin by discussing the FIDE Candidates Tournament, which is set to resume on April 19, 2021. 

Mentioned: Russian Superfinals, GM Kirill Alekseenko, FIDE Candidates Wikipedia Page including participants and standings here:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Chess_Championship_2021

Candidates odds to win:

https://sports.bwin.com/en/sports/events/candidates-tournament-2020-9514213

22:30- 

Peter answers the first question from the Perpetual Chess Patreon mailbag: “is it possible that Peter’s famed modesty gives him a competitive disadvantage?”

Mentioned: GM Sergei Shipov 

26:30- Perpetual Chess is proud to be brought to you in part by Chessable.com. You can pick up GM Peter Svidler’s The Grunfeld: Lifetime Repertoires Part 1 here:

https://www.chessable.com/lifetime-repertoires-peter-svidlers-grunfeld-part-1/course/63116/

The free short and sweet version is here:

https://www.chessable.com/short-sweet-peter-svidlers-grunfeld/course/70030/

27:00 What were the biggest challenges of creating Peter’s much- anticipated course on the Grunfeld opening? 

Mentioned: GM Danill Dubov, GM Harikrishna 

41:25- Patreon question: How can a player improve at quiet positions? 

Mentioned: Peter’s Svidler’s “Training with Tani” Youtube Series

48:30- Patreon question: “When will we see Peter and GM Jan Gustafsson announcing again?” 

53:30- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Aimchess.com. Aimchess  collects and analyzes your online games and gives you actionable advice on what phases to work on. You can check out their site for free, and if you sign up, use the Promo Code “Chess30” to save 30%

54:00- Patreon question: “Does Peter’s love for the video game Hearthstone help his chess?” 

GM Evgeny Tomashevsky, GM Ian Nepomniatchi 

56:30- Patreon questions: “Will Peter ever write a chess book? If he did, what would it be about?” 

Mentioned: Masterclass with GM Yannick Pelletier:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=paCReNKAcNg

Peters’s Recap of his Tilburg 1997 win vs. GM Garry Kasparov

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U1iefMAb-Tk

Also Mentioned: GM Boris Gelfand’s books with GM Jacob Aagaard, FM Michiel Abeln’s The Anand Files, From London to Elista 

1:04:00- Patreon question: “Who are Peter’s favorite cricket players?” 

1:05:30-  Patreon question: “Does Peter think that there are similarities between learning languages and chess?” 

Mentioned: Leisure Suit Larry 

1:10:00- Thanks to much to GM Peter Svidler for re-joining the show! Here are the links for his Twitter account, Twitch Streaming, and Chessable course:

https://twitter.com/polborta?lang=en

https://www.twitch.tv/plbrta

https://www.chessable.com/discussion/thread/242991/lifetime-repertoire-the-grunfeld-peter-svidler-/

Peter Svidler “Lifetime Repertoires” Grunfeld-Part 1- Course Giveaway Instructions! 

1. Go to Perpetual Chess Youtube page here-

   1. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCtcudElmRsQYTwULtd_gnFw/videos

2. Subscribe to the channel and take a screenshot

3. Email the screenshot to ben@perpetualchesspod.com with the subject header “YouTube”

4. Done!

5. Winners will be announced via email on May 1

   I will not be able to respond to all contestants’ emails, but you all should get an email when the winners are announced. Thanks for playing!

If you would like to join the Perpetual Chess Patreon community, or to help support Perpetual Chess in other ways, you can learn more here:

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Episode 221- Chris Callahan of Lichess.org

This week we are joined by Chris Callahan, who is the Community Organizer of LiChess.org. Lichess is a community supported, free, open-source, ad- and tracker-free chess site which plays host to over 5 million chess games per day. Back in 2017, I interviewed its founder, Thibault Duplessis, so it was past time to catch up on all that is new with this great site. It has been especially important during the past year as online chess has surged in popularity. We discussed everything from how they dealt with a huge traffic surge, to their capabilities in the area of cheating detection. We talked about the viability of their current business plan as well as their future plans. Chris also delved a bit into his own chess background, and shared his unique perspective on scholastic chess teaching and chess improvement. It was fun to catch up with him and to learn more about this website on which so many of us enjoy playing on a daily basis.

Click here to download the Episode

0:00- Chris shares a bit about his chess background, what is new with Lichess founder Thibault Duplessis, and how he became a LiChess employee, 

Mentioned: IM Christof Sielecki, LiChess Studies , Episode 25- Thibault Duplessis 

7:00- LiChess traffic doubled in 2 weeks when the pandemic hit. How did they handle it? As a donation-driven non-profit, how is LiChess holding up financially? 

Mentioned: The Lichess Costs document we reference is here:

http://lichess.org/costs

16:30- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com! Check out their latest here, including GM Peter Svidler's much anticipated course on the Grunfeld:

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

17:00- Chris answers a Patreon mailbag question relating to various Lichess capabilities and future plans including what their philosophy is on sharing their open source coding. 

25:30- Chris discusses a recent controversy involving Chessbase and the open source community. It is alleged that Chessbase was not transparent about using Stockfish’s Open Source Code for its Fat Fritz engine. More info in Peter Dogger’s summary here: 

https://www.chess.com/news/view/chessbase-fat-fritz-2-stockfish-leela-chess-zero

31:00- What is Lichess’ approach to the use of a cheat detection/engine by players? 

Mentioned: Episode 18 with IM Danny Rensch, Episode 136 with IM Ken Regan, GM Wesley So, GM Raunak Sadhwhani 

48:00- What are the goals of the LiChess Twitch and YouTube channels? What other projects might LiChess work on? 

Mentioned: LiChess Study- Logical Chess Move by Move:

https://lichess.org/study/Wn7aMkPy

58:00- What is Chris’ guiding principle in teaching chess to kids? What else would Chris like to see change in the chess community? 

Mentioned: IM Eric Rosen and The Stafford Gambit, Chess for Zebras 

1:05:00- Thanks so much to Chris for sharing his knowledge and catching us up on Lichess.

Join the LiChess Discord here:

https://lichess.org/team/chesscord-discord-community

You can follow Chris on LiChess here: 

https://lichess.org/@/NoJoke

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

The Perpetual Chess Podcast

Episode 220- Bruce Pandolfini

Photo via Wikimedia Commons

Bruce Pandolfini is a trailblazer for American chess who is well known as a top scholastic coach, prolific author, and consultant on landmark chess productions like the 1993 movie, Searching for Bobby Fischer, and the 2020 smash hit Netflix series The Queen’s Gambit. Bruce even served on the announcing team for PBS in the legendary 1972 Fischer vs. Spassky World Championship match. 

With such a resume, obviously Bruce has accumulated a treasure trove of stories, and perspective. In our interview, Bruce drew on his experience as an early coach of future GM Fabiano Caruana and IM Josh Waitzkin to discuss the nature of chess talent, and he told stories of a few of his interactions with Bobby Fischer as a New Yorker of the same generation. Bruce also opined on the growth of and future of chess, and discussed his involvement in The Queen’s Gambit,  both the novel and the series. Obviously,I found this to be an entertaining and informative interview, and I hope that you will as well. Please read on for more details and links related to all that we discussed. 

Click here to download the Episode

0:00- We begin by reliving some stories from Bruce’s youth in Brooklyn, and his interactions with chess legends like Bobby Fischer and GM Larry Evans. 

Mentioned: Caroline Marshall, Fabiano Caruana, Billy Wilder, Stanley Kubrick, Al Horowitz 

9:30- How did Bruce end up a part of the announcing team for PBS for the 1972 Fischer vs. Spassky “Match of the Century?” 

Mentioned: Shelby Lyman, Eugene Meyer, GM Edmar Mednis, Dustin Hoffman, GM Nicolas Rossolimo, IM Bernard Zuckerman. Bobby Fischer’s Outrageous Chess Moves, Here is the video of Bobby Fischer appearing on The Tonight Show in 1972- 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QxvnEwvgfeI, Saul Bellow, Kurt Vonnegut 

22:00- Perpetual Chess is proud to be brought to you in part by Chessable.com. You can always check out what’s new there through this link: 

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

23:00- Patreon mailbag question: “How does Bruce deal with students whose parents are challenging?“

Mentioned: Bill Goichberg

29:00- Does Bruce notice any traits in common amongst the top talents he has worked with such as  IM Josh Waitzkin and GM Fabiano Caruana? 

Fred Waitzkin, Bonnie Waitzkin. Lou Caruana, Robert Hess, GM Joel Benjamin, GM Miron Sher 

37:00- Another Patreon Mailbag question: “What are some of Bruce’s favorite chess books?” 

Mentioned: My 60 Memorable Games, Botvinnik: One Hundred Selected Chess Games, Alekhine’s My Best Games of Chess, Fred Reinfeld’s The Human Side of Chess, Irving Chernev, GM Andy Soltis  

39:00- Another question from a Patreon supporter: “How has Bruce’s chess improvement advice changed over the years?”

Mentioned: Shelby Lyman 

46:30- Bruce answers the question,  “How has the rise of chess on YouTube and Twitch impacted Bruce’s students?” 

Mentioned: Jose Raoul Capablanca, Wilhelm Steinitz 

52:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessmood.com. Check out their website and subscribe to their YouTube channel here: 

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMBUU6aq2b07VtTAMO0xGTw

53:00- We talk about Bruce’s work on The Queen’s Gambit, both Walter Tevis’ novel and the series. 

Mentioned: John Hartmann interview with Bruce Pandolfini:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CpfWu-OvAlg

Also Mentioned: Bill Horberg, Scott Frank, Anya Taylor Joy, Garry Kasparov’s talk with the US Chess Girl’s Group is here: 

https://www.kasparov.com/garry-kasparov-talks-to-us-chess-girls-group-about-the-queens-gambit/

Also Mentioned: Searching for Bobby Fischer, Lasker’s Manual of Chess, 

1:03:00- In closing, we discuss Bruce’s future projects, including whether he may ever write a memoir. Thanks so much to Bruce for joining the show! 

Mentioned: Kimberly Doo McVay

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