This episode we hear about how the medieval world invested chess with its own social, cultural and spiritual meaning. Sign up for the free newsletter to receive the resources for this episode: https://audiblechess.substack.com/

This episode is about an eight-year-old boy who was so good at chess that everyone thought he was possessed by the devil.  It’s the story of Jose Raul Capablanca.  Sign up for the free newsletter to receive all the resources for this episode: https://audiblechess.substack.com/

This episode we hear about fortunes lost and won, and a man playing a game of chess with the threat of execution if he loses. It’s the story of Ossip Berstein. As I announce in this episode, all of the resources contained in these show notes will now be located in the newsletter. You can subscribe to it here:  https://audiblechess.substack.com/welcome This episode we’re studying the first 24 moves of Bernstein vs. Miguel Najdorf, Montevideo, Uruguay (1954).  Before you listen, check out...

This episode we hear about a mysterious match that took place on the Internet Chess Club. We’re studying the game between Nigel Short (username: Ural; white pieces) and (possibly?) Bobby Fischer.  Before you listen, study the first 24 moves of the following game:  (30) Guest2563 - Ural (2439) [A03] ICC, 04.03.2001.  The annotation can be found here: https://en.chessbase.com/portals/4/files/games/iccf1.htm Resources: Game analysis:    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7B9p2PrsKWY Reddit...

This episode we hear about the man who said that pawns were “the soul of chess.”  It’s an episode on Philidor.  We’re studying Philidor vs. an unknown player (France, 1790).  Before you listen, check out the full annotation here: https://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1075428 Resources: Game analysis (video):    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9QVGEqB6kcI&t=78s Opening study (King’s Gambit):  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rmiBGuSwUrw&t=61s Support the show: ...

This episode is about a chess game transformed into fiction. We’re studying Steinitz vs. Chigorin, Havana (1892). Before you listen, check out the full annotation here: https://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1036356 Resources: Video analysis (not great, but best I could find!): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t-xVHGQxXhg&list=PL7mW9aR2QDf-Wbhud-dwYRp6CSYpdRD9V&index=16 Opening study (Spanish Opening, Morphy Defense): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X1tFgq8el-E Support...

This episode we hear about a young man who in just six months’ time went from losing regularly at his local club to being, some say, the best chess player in his country.  It’s the story of Akiba Rubinstein. We’re studying Rubinstein vs. Gersh Rotlewi, Lodz (1907).  You can check out the full annotation here: https://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1119679 Resources: Game analysis: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AtItayItxb8 Opening study (Tarrasch Defense):...

This episode we hear about a man with a distinctly psychological approach to the game.  It’s the story of Emanuel Lasker. We’re studying Lasker vs Vasja Pirc, Moscow (1935).  Before you listen, you can check out the full annotation here: https://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1272440 Resources: Game analysis: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8dnzBQ0K8RE Opening study (Sicilian Defense: Scheveningen Variation): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kp5N_d3JS6Y Support the...

This episode we hear about the life of Louis Charles Mahe De La Bourdonnais and his famous match in London, 1834. Before you listen, you can check out the full annotation here: https://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1001165 Resources: Game analysis:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SJnCgTC5VDc Opening study (Sicilian): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qM4e7g2RukI Le Palamede: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Le_Palam%C3%A8de George Walker:...

This episode we’re in Moscow for the 1984 World Chess Championship.  The game we’re studying is Anatoly Karpov vs Viktor Korchnoi, Moscow (1974).  Before you listen, check out the full annotation here:  https://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1067858 Resources: Game analysis:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cu4pZfhH7Fk Opening study (Sicilian Dragon): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fxWOwXVd8iM Review of “Chess is My Life”:...

This episode we hear about an amazing display of blindfold chess.The game we’re studying is Pillsbury vs Winawer, Budapest (1896).   Before you listen, check out the full annotation here:...

This episode we're in 16th-century Spain, where a nobleman is imprisoned and awaiting execution.  The game is Ruy Lopez vs Giovanni Leonardo (1560).  It's one that Lopez played during his Italian travels.  Before you listen, check out the full...

It was October 1935 and Alexander Alekhine was on his way to Amsterdam to defend his World Champion title.  To avoid a serious challenge he’d chosen a relatively easy opponent for the match, a man named Max Euwe.  Euwe was actually an amateur player, so...

By the 1920s, the modern and more scientific approach to chess that began with Wilhelm Steinitz had been around for over half a century.  It seemed that the core principles of the game had been discovered.  Then one man arrived and challenged...

He was a rising star in Russian chess, but after the First World War he fled the country to settle in France.  Not long after, he found himself at the top of the chess world as the fourth World Chess Champion.  But then, during the Occupation of France...

A nine-year-old boy shows his father and uncle where they went wrong in their recent game.   The remarkable thing?  Nobody had ever taught him how to play chess.The game this time is Morphy vs. Duke Karl and Count Isouard (1858).   You can find the...

An Italian boy, raised in poverty, leaves home with little education but the one he gave himself over the chessboard.  Just a few years later, he’s playing chess in the palaces of kings and queens.The game this time is Greco (with the black pieces)...

“You must take your opponent into a deep dark forest where 2+2=5, and the path leading out is only wide enough for one.”  - Mikhail Tal, The Life and Games of Mikhail TalDescription:  This episode is Tal vs. Botvinnik, Moscow (1960).  Study the game...

It's part two of Fischer vs. Berliner (New York, 1960) from Chernev's classic book, The Most Instructive Games of Chess Ever Played.  We cover moves 19-36.  Alekhine Defense.  Fischer demonstrates the power of the passed pawn.  Study the game, then...

October 24, 2020AUDIBLE CHESSEpisode 24: “The Soul of Chess”: Fischer vs. Berliner, New York (1960)"The pawns are the soul of chess." -PhilidorThis episode is part one of Fischer vs. Berliner (moves 1-18), from Chernev's classic book, The Most...

UPDATE!   A few more changes for this episode.  The biggest change is that you'll need to go to www.audiblechess.com to study the “starting position” before listening to the episode.  On the website you’ll also find some updated material (updated as of...

UPDATE:  The new website is live!  Check it out:  www.audiblechess.com.  And while you’re there, sign up for the newsletter.This episode we study Capablanca vs. Tartakower (moves 26-36).  Please note the change in moves for this episode.  Rather than...

This episode we finish Nigel Short vs Jan Timman (moves 21-34), but only after a couple exciting announcements: a name change for the podcast and a new website in the works!Study the game, then listen and see how well you can visualise the moves...

This episode we cover the first 20 moves of Nigel Short vs Jan Timman, otherwise known as “A Long Walk off a Short Peer”.   Study the game, then listen and see how well you can visualise the moves "blindfold".  This episode includes a few mini quizzes...