September 11th

Otto Zimmermann (11-09-1892 - 24-07-1979) Swiss composer

Otto Zimmermann was a chess player who had his best results in the 1920s. He composed direct mates.

Zimmermann, Otto
Schweizerische Schachzeitung, 1964
1^st Prize

#3

9 + 8

Show Solution

In the diagram position, 1...Re4-e7+? 2.Sc6xe7 or 1...Re4-b4+? 2.Sc6xb4 are followed by a mate by the King battery. The key exposes the white King to a new check:
1.Kb7-a6 ! (2.Sc6-d4/Sc6-e5#)
1...Re4-a4+ 2.Ka6-b5 ! (3.Sc6-d4/Sc6-e5#) 2...Ra4-a5+, Ra4-b4+ 3.Sc6xa5, Sc6xb4#
1...Re4-e6 2.Rh1-g1 (3.Rg1-g3#) 2...f5-f4 3.Bh3-g4# or 2...Re6xc6+ 3.Qa8xc6# or 2...Bf8-d6 3.Sc6-d4/Sc6-e5#

Александр Константинович Калинин (11-09-1914 - 09-09-2004) Russian composer (Aleksandr Konstantinovich Kalinin)

Kalinin, Kazantsev and Gulyaev, Moscow 1996
[Gr. Popov]

Aleksandr Kalinin had a long composing career and his output was varied: direct mates, studies, helpmates. He was nine times champion of the USSR in sections threemovers, moremovers and studies.

Калинин, Александр Константинович
Смена (Москва) Dec 1994 (119)
3^rd Prize

#4

3 + 3

Show Solution

1. Bb3!

1... B~ 2. Qf1+ Bc1 3. Bc2+! Ka1/a2, Kxc2 4. Qa6, Qd3#
1... Bf4 2. Qxf4 (3. Qf1#) 2... Ka1 3. Qf6 Kb1 4. Qf1#

Model mates.

A subtle endgame:

Калинин, Александр Константинович
Командное первенство СССР 1981
3^rd Prize

+

4 + 4

Show Solution

1. Bd2+ Kh5
{1... f4 2. Bxf4+ Kh5 3. Bd2 Bf3 4. b6 Kg4 5. Bc1 Kh3 6. b7 Bxb7 7. Kxb7 Kg4 8. f4}
2. f4 !
{2. b6 ? Bf3 3. Bc1 Kg4 4. b7 Bxb7 5. Kxb7 Kf3 and Black wins the last white pawn}
2... Kg4 3. b6 Bf3 4. Bc1 !
{The Bishop goes a little farther from the black King; if immediately 4. b7 ? Bxb7 5. Kxb7 Kf3 6. Kc6 Ke2 [wins a tempo] 7. Bb4 Kf3 8. Bd2 Ke2 9. Bc1 Kd1 10. Be3 Ke2 11. Bc1 Kd1 12. Ba3 Ke2 13. Bb4 Kf3 14. Bd2 Ke2}
4... Be4 5. b7 Bxb7 6. Kxb7 Kf3 7. Kc6 Ke2 8. Kc5 Kd1 9. Be3 Ke2 10. Kd4 +-

Hans Moser (11-09-1931) German composer

On the occasion of Hans Moser's 80th birthday, Frank Müller selected some of his problems for the "mpk-Blätter" (Mitteilungen des Münchner Problemkreises) .
Let's select other problems:

Moser, Hans
Schach-Echo, 1974
1^st-2^nd Prize

r#2

5 + 10

Show Solution

1.Qe5-c3 + !

1...Sa2xc3 2.Sc7-e6 Sc3-d5#
1...Bb2xc3 2.Bg4-e6 Bc3-b4#
1...Kc2xc3 2.Ke7-e6 Qb1-e4#
1...Rb3xc3 2.Rg6-e6 Rc3xc7#

After each capture by a black unit, White replies by moving a unit of the same type to square e6.
White Grimshaw on e6.

Moser, Hans
Feenschach, 1989
2^nd Prize

h#4

2 solutions

3 + 5

Show Solution

1.h2-h1=R Ka3-b2 ! 2.Kb5xa4 Sg1-e2 3.Rh1-b1+ Kb2-a2 4.Rb1-b4 Se2-c3#
1.h2-h1=B Sg1-f3 2.Bh1-g2 ! Sf3-e5 3.Bg2-b7 Se5-c6 4.Bb7-a6 Sc6-a7#
Two minor promotions and two tempo moves (by White and Black).

Jacques Rotenberg (11-09-1956) French composer and International Master

Jacques Rotenberg
[Facebook]

Jacques Rotenberg has been residing in Israel since 2004. He started composing in the 1970s. He recalled his first chess problem memories on Problemiste.fr but the link is unfortunately broken.
He composes direct mates, helpmates, and some selfmates, retro problems or endgame studies. He was during a few years the French delegate at the PCCC and organized the Belfort Congress in 1994. Besides being IM in composing, he is also a strong solver (IM for solving). He composed many problems in collaboration with other composers such as Jean-Marc Loustau or Michel Caillaud.

What is the common theme of the problems below?

Rotenberg, Jacques
Rex Multiplex, 1983
1^st Prize

h#2

b) bPb6->b5

4 + 15

Show Solution

a) Try: 1.Rf4 ? --? 2.Se4 Qxc4#
1. Rd4 exd6 2. Rxd6 Qxc4#
b) Try 1.Rd1 ? --? 2.Sd2 Qxd6
1. Rd4 bxc4 2. Rxc4 Qxd6#
Wurzburg-Plachutta.

Rotenberg, Jacques & Loustau, Jean-Marc
The Problemist, 2003
1^st Prize

#3 vv

11 + 10

Show Solution

1.d2-d3? (1.Sd7-c5/Sa6-c5/Rc7xc3#) Rg3xd3!
1.Sd7-e5? (1.Bg4xe6/Sa6-c5#) Re2xe5!
1.b6-b7 ! (2.Sa6-c5+ Kb3-c4 3.Sd7-b6#)

1...Re2-e3 2.d2-d3 (3.Sd7-c5/Rc7xc3/Sa6-c5#) 2...Bf1xd3, Re3xd3 3.Rc7xc3, Bg4xe6#
1...Rg3-e3 2.Sd7-e5 (3.Sa6-c5/Bg4xe6#) 2...Bh2xe5, Re3xe5 3.Bg4xe6, Rc7xc3#

Wurzburg-Plachutta again.

Rotenberg, Jacques
Messigny, 2011
3^rd Prize

h#2

3.1.1.1

6 + 6

Show Solution

1. Sc4 Qb7 2. Qc6 Qb1#
1. Ba1 Qa8 2. Qb7 Qxa1#
1. Bd4 Qc6 2. Qd5 Qc1#
Loshinsky magnet on the long diagonal.