January 3rd

Микола Іванович Чернявський (03-01-1952) Ukrainian composer (Mikola Ivanovich Chernyavskij)

Alexander Nikitin, Oleg Efrosinin and Mikola Chernyavskij
[Thanks to Александр Никитин]

Mikola Chernyavskij, 2012

Чернявський, Микола Іванович
The Problemist, 1993
HM

#2

4 + 3

Show Solution

Set play: 1...O-O-O 2.Qc6# 1...Ng5/Nh8/Ne5/Nd6/Nd8 2.Qh8#
1.Qh7! (2.Qg8#)
1...Kf8 2.Qxf7#
1...O-O-O 2.Qc2#
1...Nh6 2.Qe7#
2 changed mates between set play and real play in miniature.

Josef Pabouček (03-01-1890 - 31-01-1980) Czech composer
Josef Pabouček was apparently a member of the Czech legion that fought in France in 1917 during WWI.
He wrote an anthology of 103 of his problems "Šachové úlohy 1925-1937"; the scan can be downloaded here.

Pabouček, Josef
Národní Osvobození 1935

s#4

9 + 4

Show Solution

1.Qg2 ! (threat: 2.Sc7+ Bxc7 3.Rc5+ Kd4 4.Qg1+ Sf2#)
1...Bg1 2.Rd3+ Bd4 3.Sgf6+ Ke5 4.Qh2+ Sg3#
The black battery is initially masked by the black King and fires at the last move.

Rudolf Weinheimer (03-01-1862 - 28-02-1940) Austrian composer

Rudolf Weinheimer was an Austrian chessplayer and composer of direct mates.
He belonged to the Viennese school of composers who followed the principles laid down by Johann Berger and whose leading representatives were Erlin, Feigl, Nemo and Weinheimer himself. For more information about him and his 1936 Olympic Tourney 1st Prize, see die Schwalbe Personalia February 2012 or February 2015 for a nice three-mover, or a celebration of his 70th birthday in the Wiener Schach-Zeitung, January 1932.

Weinheimer, Rudolf
6th Prize, Neuigkeits-Welt-Blatt, Jubiläumsturnier

#4

8 + 5

Show Solution

1.♘c4! (threat: 2.♖×a2#)
1...♖×b2 2.♘a3! (nice switchback with the threat: 3.♘d1 ~ 4.♗×b2#)
with two variations:
2...♖b4 3.♖×b4 ~ 4.♘×d5#
2...b×a5 3.♘cb1! a×b1=♕ 4.♘c2#

Secondary variations:
1...♖h6+ 2.♗f6 ♖×f6+ 3.♔×f6 ~ 4.♖×a2#
1...♖e2+ 2.♘×e2
and 2...♔b1 3.♘a3+ ♔a1 4.b4/b3#
or 2...d×c4 3.♖×c4 ~ 4.♖c1#