Dawn Novarina

Monday, October 2 IM Valeri Lilov Kramnik’s Positional Masterpiece (strategy)
The positional era of chess started in the early 20th century and soon became the most important era in chess. One of the greatest chess players, Vladimir Kramnik, showed this once again in his latest masterpiece against a strong chess master.

Tuesday, October 3 IM Bill Paschall Petrosian on the King’s Indian Attack, Part 7 (openings, strategy)
Petrosian gives a master class on positional play. White gains an advantage in development and coordination and never looks back.

Wednesday, October 4 FM Dennis Monokroussos Disenchantment in the Opening: The End of 3…b5 in the QGA? (openings)
In chess and elsewhere, it sometimes turns out that a clever and beautiful idea has a fatal flaw. Finding the flaw may not be easy, but once it’s spotted the idea must be retired. This may be the case for the line 1.d4 d5 2.c4 dxc4 3.e4 b5, intending an exchange sacrifice. It has been trendy since 2014, but this game, along with the companion game Huschenbeth-Haast, may have put it out of business.

Thursday, October 5 GM Leonid Kritz How to Play Against 5.Bf4 in the Queen’s Gambit Declined (openings)
In this game, Nakamura shows a very solid way how to kill White’s opening play in the Queen’s Gambit Declined with 5.Bf4. He easily equalizes the position, and only a tactical miscalculation allows white to get a full point.

Friday, October 6 GM Eugene Perelshteyn Carlsen’s Surprising a-pawn Push Eliminates Dreev from World Cup! (openings, strategy, tactics)
World Champion Magnus Carlsen never fails to surprise us! In this game he plays a4-a5-a6 and wins easily, eliminating an experienced GM Dreev from the FIDE World Cup. Learn how to play like the World Champ!

Monday, September 25 IM Valeri Lilov Fischer’s Teenage Mastery (opening)
Bobby Fischer is hands down the most popular world champion in history. His ability to defeat the unbeatable Soviet grandmasters in the 70s, as well as his dominative play brought some of the best classical games we can learn from today. What was Bobby when he was still young before he became the legendary champion? Did he play positional chess or more tactically? IM Valeri Lilov will show you one of Bobby’s most memorable games in this lecture. Don’t miss it out!
 
Tuesday, September 26 IM Bill Paschall The Rise of the Italian Game, Part 3 (opening, strategy)
Carlsen plays the Giuoco with an early a4 and the plan of Na3-c2, a relatively new idea in this opening. White also gains a spacial advantage with a4 – a5 and in the center gains control with d3-d4. White achieves virtual zugzwang in the endgame and Black is forced to lose material as White’s pieces are too dominant.

Wednesday, September 27 FM Dennis Monokrousos No Draws With the Petroff (opening, tactics)
Description: It wasn’t that long ago Petroff’s Defense was the scourge of 1.e4 players, at least at the professional level, and indirectly one for the chess fans who watched them. Now it’s the Berlin that has taken the palm, and which has sent the world’s elite scurrying off to the Italian Game. But that’s the subject for another day. The Petroff still has its loyal advocates, especially in China, but if White finds more brilliant ideas like the one Nepomniachtchi did in this game they may join the rest of the worldwide exodus to the Berlin. Nepo’s prep was fantastic, and he won a beautiful game as a result. Enjoy it in its own right, and as a weapon in the anti-Petroff arsenal.

Thursday, September 28 IM David Vigorito The Dzindzi Indian Repertoire V (opening, endgame)
We continue looking at the famed Dzindzi-Indian by examining a straightforward fianchetto for White that I dug out of my archives. This is a decent idea, but White must be accurate. In this game, White tried to play it safe rather than fighting for the initiative, and he ends up in a worse endgame.

Friday, September 29 GM Bryan Smith Coffeehouse Chess, Part 10 (tactics)
In the latest edition of ‘Coffeehouse Chess’, GM Bryan Smith shows a spectacular game played between GMs Alexander Shabalov and Alex Lenderman, which showcases Shabalov’s tactical genius.

Monday, September 18 IM Valeri Lilov Importance of Center and Space (strategy)
In a recent tournament game, the Dutch Grandmaster Erwin L’ami proved how to effectively combine the two most important concepts in strategy: Center and Space. Tune in to IM Lilov’s lecture to learn more!

Tuesday, September 19 IM Bill Paschall Petrosian on the King’s Indian Attack, Part 6 (openings, strategy)
Black plays passively against the KIA and White gains a serious space advantage on the kingside. White exploits the weak dark squares in the position and attempts to then gain a spacial advantage on both sides. Petrosian then breaks through decisively with a temporary piece sacrifice and a powerful king.

Wednesday, September 20 FM Dennis Monokroussos Breaching the Gates of the Vienna Variation (tactics)
The Vienna Variation is one of the sharpest options available to Black against 1.d4, and when Black plays sharply it’s especially important to be precise – one mistake can be fatal. That’s what happened in this 2016 game. White gambited a pawn and then a piece for two pawns for a very dangerous attack. Black had one way to survive, but to find it and work it out over the board (rather than on one’s engine in the comfort of one’s study) was asking a bit too much of Black. She didn’t manage it, and lost a very nice game.

Thursday, September 21 GM Leonid Kritz An Unusual Najdorf Line (openings, strategy)
Great game by Hou Yifan, who strategically outplays Navara without giving him a chance. She introduces an interesting opening construction with a long (queenside) castle where you would not think it makes sense, but at the end of the day her plan completely pays off.

Friday, September 22 GM Eugene Perelshteyn The Power of the Attacking Knight Outpost (strategy, tactics)
We all know that rook is better than a knight. But never underestimate the power of the attacking outpost! In this game, White shows how a knight can dominate a rook. Watch and learn and try to find a nice bonus tactic in the end!

Monday, September 11 IM Valeri Lilov The Formula of Speed (middlegame, strategy)
The concept of speed appears in the game of every chess player. Often considering it vaguely, we misinterpret its value and let the opponent get ahead with his attack and outplay us. In this lecture, IM Lilov will try to shed some light on how we can determine the speed in our own games!

Tuesday, September 12 IM Bill Paschall The Rise of the Italian Game, Part 2 (opening, strategy)
Radjabov faces the Two Knights setup with 4…h6, a variation where Black will set up in King’s Indian style. In this game, we follow a typical move order until the interesting sequence of 10. Kh8 and 11.a4. Black prepares a kingside attack and white takes space on the queenside. White uses the exchange 15.dxe5 to simplify the game and Black fails to trade knights, which would ease his cramp. In the resulting position, white induces the weakening c5, takes control of the d5 square and later exploits Black’s pawn weaknesses. Black’s counterattack is too little and too late.

Wednesday, September 13 FM Dennis Monokrousos Another Attacking Gem Against the 3.f3 Anti-Gruenfeld (openings, strategy)
This game should be seen in conjunction with the spectacular Najer-Mamedyarov game covered approximately seven shows ago (“Mamedyarov Wins an Instant Classic”). After the same transformation of openings resulted in a Modern Benoni, Black once again succeeded with dynamic play in creating a dangerous attack against White’s king. As in the game covered in the earlier show, imaginative, energetic, sacrificial play did the trick. If you’re looking for an approach against the 3.f3 Anti-Gruenfeld line, this may be just the thing for you.

Thursday, September 14 IM David Vigorito Blood from a Stone (endgame)
A half point behind in the last round, only a win will suffice. My familiar opponent plays rock-solid however, and the game is looking to head for a draw. This game is as much about managing the situation as it is about the moves. Nerves and technique play as big a part as tactics and calculation would in many games. Find the double exclam ‘nothing move’ that essentially won the game!

Friday, September 15 GM Bryan Smith Striking Counterattack by Sevian (tactics)
In this fantastic game, a sharp attack by famed attacker Alexei Shirov is refuted in a shocking way by young talent Samuel Sevian. After an inaccuracy Shirov is back in the game, but a final mistake leads to a thrilling king hunt.

Monday, September 4 IM Valeri Lilov The Opening Trouble (strategy, opening)
Many chess players consider it difficult to prove the opponent’s delay in development a failure. This is mostly due to the fact that many chess players are not aware of the right guidelines they should follow when exploiting the opponent’s mistakes. Check out IM Lilov’s lecture to learn more!

Tuesday, September 5 IM Bill Paschall Petrosian on the King’s Indian Attack, Part 5 (opening, strategy)
Petrosian and Barcza transpose from a Sicilian move order to a King’s Indian Attack vs the French Defense. In this game, white gains a space advantage and begins to have threats on the kingside. Black breaks with the risky 25…f6 and the result is a position containing serious pawn weaknesses. Petrosian relies on piece coordination, better pawn structure and king safety to win

Wednesday, September 6 FM Dennis Monokrousos Sutovsky Smashes a Sicilian Sideline (opening, tactics)
Emil Sutovsky is a great attacking player, and while he was surprised in the opening by Anton Korobov’s unusual 5…Nbd7, any subsequent surprises – at least those of an unpleasant sort – were experienced by Black, not White. Sutovsky won a sparkling miniature on the way to taking first place in this year’s strong Karpov Poikovsky tournament.

Thursday, September 7 GM Leonid Kritz An Interesting Idea in the Najdorf (tactics)
An important theoretical idea played by Ponomariov in a famous Najdorf line. White is not afraid of opening the files on the queen side where his king is located, and attempts to put Black under strategic pressure. A very positional game with an unexpected end.

Friday, September 8 GM Eugene Perelshteyn A New Idea in the Qc2 Nimzo for White (opening, strategy, tactics)
In this game White introduces a new idea in the Qc2 Nimzo and Black tries to refute it over the board.  The game becomes pretty sharp quickly!  Are you able to see all the tactics and answer all the questions?  If so, you will win a nice miniature!

Monday, August 28 IM Valeri Lilov The Problem of Structure (middlegame, strategy)
In many games, people of all levels wonder how is it possible to achieve a more successful pawn structure right from the opening. While the answer is usually quite simple, learning to evaluate it could be very challenging. Let IM Lilov teach you more in this video!

Tuesday, August 29 IM Bill Paschall The Rise of the Italian Game, Part 1 (opening, middlegame)
Jakovenko plays a plan with an early a4 which is somewhat rare in the Italian. Aronian plays creatively, and aggressively, first with an early b5 and later with the amazing 24… g5 !! pawn sacrifice to open lines against the White king. In the end , white lost due to the weakness around his king, the move h4 and perhaps the faulty exchange 13.Bxe6 , which opened the f-line as an attacking avenue for Black. Another multifaceted Aronian masterpiece is born.

Wednesday, August 30 FM Dennis Monokrousos Sometimes the Karpov Variation Isn’t Solid Enough (opening, tactics)
The Karpov Variation of the Nimzo-Indian (which can arise through the Caro-Kann as well!) is an excellent repertoire choice for Black, combining both solidity and chances to play for a win. The general theory is also pretty stable, but here as everywhere in chess, new ideas show up from time to time, and Ponomariov used one in this game. Objectively, Black has sufficient resources, but one must figure things out over the board, and at least this time around Black failed to do so. Macieja made a surprising error (or two) and was punished, but even apart from the results of this game there is much we can learn from it.

Thursday, August 31 IM David Vigorito Running Interference (middlegame, tactics)
An English Opening meets English Defence and turns into a Queen’s Indian. Caught off-guard in the opening, I play to just get a sensible position. We quickly end up in an old main line of the Queen’s Indian Defence. Although I win the game in the endgame, I missed a great chance to win with an interference theme. Can you find the idea that I missed?

Friday, September 1 GM Bryan Smith Adventures in the PRO Chess League, Part 2 (strategy, tactics, opening)
In part two, Bryan Smith analyzes the third and fourth games for the Philadelphia Inventors against Las Vegas in the PRO Chess League. Rapid games – with 15 minutes per side, plus 2 seconds added after each move – make every game a tense adventure.

Monday, August 21 IM Valeri Lilov Pawn-breaks in the Attack (opening)
Using pawn breaks as a tool to open up your pieces and attack the opponent is a common tactic used by the great masters. The problem is that for most intermediate players, pawn breaks turn out difficult to evaluate and execute properly. In this video, IM Valeri Lilov sheds some new light on that powerful technique.

Tuesday, August 22 IM Bill Paschal Petrosian on the King’s Indian Attack, Part 4 (opening, strategy)
Petrosian plays the KIA against a French setup. Black mistakenly gives up his strongpoint on d5 and White gains a serious space advantage. White is able to weaken the Black kingside and then gain decisive attacking chances. Black attempts a sacrifice for counter play, but falls short.

Wednesday, August 23 FM Dennis Monokrousos Winning a la Karpov in a Dragon Sideline (tactics)
No matter which side you like to play in the Dragon, it’s hard to avoid learning loads of theory if you want to play it correctly. So it’s nice to have a sideline handy, at least for an occasional surprise weapon. That’s what White had in this game, and it worked like gangbusters, enabling him to defeat a much stronger opponent – in style! (It helped that he knew his classics.) Dragon and anti-Dragon players especially will want to tune in and see this game!

Thursday, August 24 GM Eugene Perelshteyn The Power of the c6 Outpost (opening, strategy, endgame)
Many d4 openings have one thing in common, c6 outpost. Watch and learn how GM Perelshteyn used this outpost for his knight to paralyze his opponent’s forces. Black decides to give up a pawn to easy the tension, but White gradually finds a way to break the fortress using zugzwang ideas, very instructive!

Friday, August 25 GM Bryan Smith Adventures in the PRO Chess League, Part 1 (stategy, tactics, opening)
Bryan Smith played in the PRO Chess League for Philadelphia. Here he analyzes the first two of his four games from the rapid time control match against the team from Las Vegas. After a careful and uneventful draw with GM Kayden Troff, a wild and highly unusual follows in a gambit line in the Trompowski against GM Timur Gareev.

Monday, August 14, IM David Vigorito A Slav-Grunfeld (opening, endgame)
Facing a student is never easy. In this game I face up to my opponent’s pet line which I always found to be annoying. An Anti-Slav ends up looking a bit like a Grunfeld and it is even classified by ECO as such. The resulting pawn structure is one that I like and it is instructive in understanding the battle of bishops vs. knight and the importance of pawn breaks.

Tuesday, August 15, IM Bill Paschall Petrosian on the King’s Indian Attack, Part 3 (opening, strategy)
Petrosian essays the KIA against the Sicilian Defense. In this lecture we see the importance of White’s strong point in the center at e4. Black creates many pawn weaknesses, which white is easily able to exploit in the endgame. Black’s play was disorganized and his pieces were uncoordinated throughout.

Wednesday, August 16, FM Dennis Monokroussos Attacking Improv by Magnus Carlsen (opening, tactics)
Here’s another remarkable blitz game by Magnus Carlsen from the Leuven tournament. His opening choice and some of the subsequent decisions were at least as crazy as they were good, but he made the most of the messy positions that resulted. His feeling for the initiative was fantastic, and while MVL managed to avoid coming under a fatal attack the result was just as bad. Carlsen achieved absolute domination on the board, such that when Black resigned on move 48 his two remaining pieces, excepting the king, were back on their original squares. Very impressive!

Thursday, August 17, GM Leonid Kritz A Crazy Caro-Kann (openings, strategy)
Given huge volumes of theory, today people start to look for “alternative risk premiums” in chess – absolutely irrational, rare lines that should not promise any serious advantage under normal circumstances, but with extensive computer preparation in the background, they can be very dangerous. Here we see one such attempt by Evgeny Najer, who surprises his opponent in the opening and gets a very nice position after some initial complications.

Friday, August 18, GM Eugene Perelshteyn How to Outplay Your Opponent from Equal Positions (openings, strategy),
Do you often find yourself struggling to find a plan in the balanced middlegame? Watch and learn from GM Perelshteyn how to apply tiny pressure on your opponent without weakening your own position. In this game, after playing well for a while, Black succumbs to pressure and opens up the game — but only to find her king in mating net!

Monday, August 7 IM Valeri Lilov Piece and Pawns (strategy)
Often times the connection between pieces and pawns remains misunderstood by player. Whether it’s because most pawns are exchanged or they can’t carry out a significant role in the play, the average chess player doesn’t quite know how to use the pawns in support of his overall strategy in the game. IM Lilov will show you how to do that in this lecture!

Tuesday, August 8 IM Bill Paschall European Championship 2017, Part 2 (openings, strategy)
Petrosian uses his extra tempo and some creative knight maneuvers to befuddle GM Donner in the opening in a King’s Indian Reversed. Finally white gains clear control of the d5 outpost, as well as white square domination in the middlegame to obtain a clear advantage. The end stage of the battle is decided when Petrosian opens a second front to attack the Black king and create additional weaknesses in Black’s camp.

Wednesday, August 9 FM Dennis Monokroussos A Smooth Win Against the King’s Indian (openings)
The King’s Indian Defense tends to be an exciting opening where Black has lots of tricks, tactical possibilities, and attacking options. Azeri super-GM Teimour Radjabov thrives in such positions and has won plenty of great games with the King’s Indian over the years, but in this game with Hungarian GM Tamas Banusz he got none of that. White played the Fianchetto Variation against the King’s Indian, and after 6…Nc6 7.Nc3 e5 played 8.dxe5. This is very safe, but it also has its drop of poison. White was able to play risk-free chess with good play in the center and on the queenside. White won material and easily neutralized all of Black’s attempts at counterplay. If you’re looking for a low-risk anti-King’s Indian line, this game looks promising for a repertoire based on the Fianchetto System, though it must be remembered that Black can vary on moves 6 and 7.

Thursday, August 10 GM Nadya Kosintseva The Importance of Development in the Openings (openings)
Many beginning chess players get into trouble already in the initial stage of the game because they underestimate the importance of rapid development in the openings. In actual fact, the main goal of openings is placing the pieces in harmonious positions and securing the king. Instead, some players spend their time at this stage of the game for premature attacks or pawn hunting. As a result, the king of such players suffers at the center of the board and often cannot be supported in time by other pieces. In this lecture, I will demonstrate to you the danger of being behind in development from the example of grandmasters’ games as well as an instructive opening gamble for the black side that pays off in the case of White’s avidity for pawns.

Friday, August 11 GM Bryan Smith Coffeehouse Chess, Part 9 (tactics)
A wild 1983 correspondence game tumbles along through various swings in the material balance and possession of the initiative. A must see for fans of the Dragon Sicilian.

Monday, July 31 IM Valeri Lilov Pros and Cons of an Early Attack (middlegame, strategy)
On occasion, we often witness early attacks on a different level. They are sometimes successful, while other times, not. In this video, IM Lilov sets the ground rules and exceptions of an early attack and how to handle it from each side.

Tuesday, August 1 IM Bill Paschall Petrosian on the King’s Indian Attack, Part 1 (opening, strategy)
Petrosian plays the King’s Indian attack against the London System setup of Max Euwe. Black gives up the central strong point at d5 and white is able to gain a significant space advantage. In the middlegame Euwe voluntarily gives up his bishop pair and White converts in the endgame with good technique owing to several factors: space, the two bishops and king safety.

Wednesday, August 2 FM Dennis Monokroussos Counterattack in the Center Game (tactics)
Magnus Carlsen was in great form in the rapid & blitz event in Leuven, Belgium. Even in blitz, he won games that would satisfy almost anyone else if played in rapid or even classical chess. One such example came in his black game against Ian Nepomniachtchi. “Nepo” has occasionally used the Center Game over the years, and this time he tried something new in the opening – 8.Qf4. (Not a novelty, but a rare move and new to his games.) Carlsen rose to the occasion, and at a critical moment when most players would have replied with a purely defensive move, he found an excellent counterattacking idea that put a stop to his opponent’s attacking dreams and seized the initiative. Carlsen won quickly and impressively, and the game has some theoretical value as well.

Thursday, August 3 GM Leonid Kritz Do Not Trap Yourself In Creativity (tactics)
A game in which Black tried a nice-looking idea in a well-known position and was punished according to the best rules of contemporary chess. The moral is simple: in most cases – 99% of the time – whatever line is not played today, it is not played for a reason!

Friday, August 4 GM Eugene Perelshteyn Miniature in the Queen’s Gambit Accepted (opening, tactics)
It is not often that you will see a game in under 25 moves with Black vs a GM-elect! Yet, this is exactly what GM Perelshteyn is able to do in a newly fashionable line of the QGA. Black sacrifices a pawn, then an exchange, then another pawn…and it looks scary. Yet, activity prevails over material as White finds himself with a king stuck in the center and with pretty rook corners the mating attack cannot be stopped!