Александр Иванович Шошин (03-03-1878 - 01-01-1906) Russian composer (Aleksandr Ivanovich Shoshin)
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Aleksandr Shoshin |
Aleksandr Shoshin was also a draughts (checkers) player.
Шошин, Александр Иванович
Шахматное обозрение 1902
2
nd-3
rd Prize
Show Solution1.Sf5! (2.Qd7 [3.Se3#])
1...Sb4 2.Qc4+ ! Kxc4 3.Se3#
1...Ke6 2.Qf7+ ! Kxf7 3.Sg7#
1...Ba6 2.Re4 ! Kxe4 3.Qc6#
Sacrifices.
Шошин, Александр Иванович
Шахматное обозрение 1902
3
rd Prize
Show Solution1.Sc7 ! (2.Qg7+ Kf4 3.Se6#)
1...Kf6 2.Rxf5+ gxf5 3.Qg7#
1...Kf4 2.Qe7 (3.Sd5#) Sxe7 3.Se6#
1...d5 2.Qe7+ Kf4, Kd4 3.Sxd5, Sb5#
1...Kd4 2.Qg7+ Sxg7, Kc5 3.Sb5, Qc3#
Model mates.
Alain Campbell White (A.C.White) (03-03-1880 - 23-04-1951) American composer
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Alain C. White
Pittsburgh Gazette Times, 30 October 1910
[Chess Notes] |
Alain C. White learnt the game of chess at 5 and composed his first problem at 11. In 1914 he founded the
Good Companions Club, to which all well-known problemists belonged.
A.C. White collected chess problems: at 12 he had inherited a collection of 5000 threemovers and until the 1930s the collection had expanded to over 250,000 problems and was taken over by George Hume.
He was the initiator of the famous Christmas series, not less than 44 volumes published at the rate of one per Christmas and sent free of charge to problemists worldwide. He also wrote "
Les mille et un Mats Inverses"(1907); "
The Theory of Pawn Promotion" (1912); "
Le problème d’échecs" with Georges Renaud in 1924. With New-York banker Frank Altschul he also published 8 beautiful chess problems books (the "
Overbook Press" collection, 1941-1945) in limited editions: for instance, "
Mansfield's Adventures In Composition -The Art of the Two Move Chess Problem" at 400 copies.
Most of Alain C. White's books can be downloaded from
Vaclav Kotesovec's wonderful website.
The introductions of the some of the books of the Christmas Series have been
put online by a French enthusiast.
About Alain C.White's nonprofit Foundation and legacy, you may read
in the New York Times.
White, Alain Campbell
200 Bauer schachproblem, 1907
Show Solution1.e8=Q ! (2.Qd1+ Rxd1#)
1...b1=Q 2.Sf5+ Qxf5#
1...b1=S 2.Qc3+ Sxc3#
1...b1=B 2.Qc2 Bxc2#
1...b1R 2.Qd1+ Rxd1#
1...bxc1=S 2.Rd3+ Sxd3#
1...bxc1=B 2.Qxe3+ Bxe3#
Allumwandlung.
White, Alain Campbell
La Stratégie, 1902
Show Solution1.Be3 !
1...f5 2.Kd2 fxe4 3.Bb1 Kxb1#
1...f6 2.Kd4 f5 3.e5 Kxc2#
Zugzwang, battery mates, active white King.
White, Alain Campbell
Good Companion, Meredith Ty, May 1918
1
st Prize
Show SolutionSet play:
1...Qd4 2.Re3#
1...e5 2.Qh3#
1.Rc4? ZZ
1...Qd4 2.Rc3# but 1...Qd5!
1.Reh4? ZZ
1...Qd4 2.R4h3#/Be4#/Bb5# but 1...Qxd7!
1.Rb4! ZZ
1...e5 2.Qh3#
1...Qd5 2.Bb5#
1...Qd4 2.Rb3#
1...Qxd7 2.Be4#
1...Bg7~ 2.Qh7#
Gamage,
pin mate, black
Pelle move.
White, Alain Campbell
Chess Review, 1941
dedicated to V.L.Eaton
1
st Prize
Show Solution1.Rd2! ZZ
1...hxg4 2.exf5 [3.Sxg4#] Sf2/Re2 3.Qxf2/Qxe2#
1...h4 2.gxf5 [3.Sg4#] Sf2/Re2 3.Qxf2/Qxe2#
1...fxe4 2.gxh5 [3.Sg4#] Sf2/Re2/Qc8 3.Qxf2/Qxe2/Sxd5#
1...fxg4 2.Bxh5 [3.Sxg4#] Sf2/Re2/Qc8 3.Qxf2/Qxe2/Sxd5#
1...exd4 2.Bxc5 [3.Bxd4#] Sf2/Re2/Qa7 3.Qxf2/Qxe2/Sxd5#
1...exf4 2.Bb8 [3.Bxf4#] Rf1/Qxb8 3.Qe2/Sxd5#
1...dxc4 2.axb5 [3.Sxc4#] Rc1/Qd5 3.Qe2/Sxd5#
1...dxe4 2.cxb5 [3.Sc4#] Rc1/Qd5 3.Qe2/Sxd5#
1...cxb4 2.dxe5+ d4/Qxa7 3.Bxd4/Sxd5#
1...cxd4 2.fxe5 [3.Bxd4#] Sf2/Re2/Qxa7 3.Qxf2/Qxe2/Sxd5#
1...bxa4 2.cxd5 [3.Sc4#] Rc1/Qxd5 3.Qe2/Sxd5#
1...bxc4 2.exd5 [3.Sxc4#] Rc1/Qxd5 3.Qe2/Sxd5#
1...Qb7 2.Sxb7 [3.Sxd5#] Sf2/Re2 3.Qxf2/Qxe2#
(1...Qd8/Qc6 2.exd8=~/Bxc6,Sxc6)
An impressive task!
Зиновий Маркович Бирнов (03-03-1911 - 02-05-1967) Russian composer (Zinovi Markovich Birnov)
Birnov was a direct mate and especially endgame studies composer.
Бирнов, Зиновий Маркович
Конкурс Эстонского КФС 1956
1
st Prize
Show Solution1. Kh3! [2. Bxh5 ~ 3. Bg4, Bg6#] and Black has two main variations:
1... Sc6 2. Bf3 [3. Be4#] Re6 3. Bxh5 [4. Bg4#] Se5 4. Bf3 [5. Be4#] Sd6 5. Bd5! ~ 6. Bxe6# or 4... Sxf3 5. g4+ Kxf4 6. Sxe6#
1... e5 2. Bf3 [3. Be4#] exf4 3. Be4+ Ke5/Kg5 4. gxf4+ Kxf4 5. Sg6+ Kg5 6. Rg1#
Keller paradox.
An example of Birnov's talent with a miniature:
Бирнов, Зиновий Маркович
Труд (Москва) 1947
2
nd Prize
Show Solution1. Rg7+
{1. Rg1? Bf2 2. Ra1 c1=Q+ 3. Rxc1 Bxa7}
1... Kb6 2. a8=S+ Ka6
{2... Kc6 3. Rc7#; 2... Ka5 3. Ra7#}
3. Sc7+ Ka5
{3... Kb7 4. Se6+ Kc6 5. Rg1; 3... Kb6 4. Sd5+ Ka6 5. Sb4+}
4. Rg1 Bg5 5. Rxg5+ d5+!
{this counter-check seems decisive}
6. Rxd5+ Ka4
{not 6... Kb6 7. Rb5+ Kxc7 8. Rc5+ and White wins the bP}
7. Sb5!! c1=Q+ 8. Sc3+ Ka3 9. Ra5+ Kb2 10. Ra2#
Achim Schöneberg (03-03-1955) German composer
Achim Schöneberg is a helpmate and fairy composer. You may remember his Isardam helpmate composed with Manfred Rittirsch - see
1st March or
directly on YACPDB.
Schöneberg, Achim
feenschach, 1988
1
st Prize
Reflexmate in two.
Show Solution1.Qf4 ! (2.Kg3 Qe1#)
1...Qxc2 2.Ke1 Qxe2#
1...Qxb2 2.Ke3 Qd4#
1...Qe1+ 2.Kxg1 Bxe2#
1...Sxe2 2.Bg3 g1=Q/B#
1...fxe2 2.Bxg1 e1=Q#
Alan White's dedication problem to Eaton originally had a much better key 1. e6-e7! (so the above is a "v") with the WR already on d2. The task is impressive, but with the key 1. e7! it would have been a phenomenal problem, in my opinion. I tried though, and even with computer help, my limited abilities could not restore that key. Maybe someone else would like to try to restore White's original intent?
ReplyDeleteBirnov's study was build on a previous idea shown by Kasparian in 1936.
ReplyDelete