December 30th

Friedrich Beck (30-12-1906 - ?) German composer

Friedrich Beck composed mostly twomovers.

Beck, Friedrich
Deutsche Schachzeitung, 1944
3^rd Prize

#2*

6 + 8

Show Solution

Set play:

1...Rb2/Rb1/Rb4/Rbc3/Rbe3/Rbf3 2.Bd5#[A]
1...Qg1/Qc1 2.Qh6#[B]
1...Rg4/Rgf3/Rge3/Rgc3/Rh3 2.Qd6#[C]

1.Rd4! (2.Rd6#)

1...Rbd3 2.Bd5#[A]
1...Qd1 2.Qh6#[B]
1...Rgd3 2.Qd6#[C]
1...Sb5/Sc4 2.Rc4#

Transferred mates.

Herbert Küchler (30-12-1908 - 02-09-1964) German composer

Herbert Küchler
[Kartothek A-K page 186]

Herbert Küchler was a chess player, composer and editor. He was specialized in direct mates.
In 1960 he founded with Helmut Klug and Manfred Zucker a chess column in the regional newspaper "Volksstimme" which merged with "Freie Presse" in 1963.

Küchler, Herbert
Schach (magazine) 1954 (1803)
4^th Prize

#5

9 + 10

Show Solution

1.Bh4-g5 ! (2.Bg5-e3#)
1...Se4xg5
2.Rb1-b4 (3.Rb4xc4#)Se8xd6
3.Rd8-d7 (4.Rd7-c7#) Sg5-e6/g7-g6
4.Rb4xc4+ Sd6xc4
5.Sb6-a4#
White first attracts the good defending Knight e4 to g5, then forces Black to make an anticipatory unpin of the wSb6 by 3...Se6/g6 in order to be able to mate after Sd6xc4.

Vladislav Buňka (30-12-1937) Czech composer

Vladislav Buňka
[V.Kotesovec]

Vladislav Buňka composes in all genres.
He wrote "444 Pomocniku" edited by Václav Kotesovec and including 444 help-problems which can be downloaded here.
He is an International Judge for helpmates, selfmates and endgames.

Buňka, Vladislav
Šachové umění 1978
2^nd Prize

+

4 + 5

Show Solution

1. f6 e4 2. f7 Bg7 3. f8=Q+ Bxf8 4. Kb6 Bc5+ 5. Kxc5 Ka7 6. Kb5 f3 7. Bxe4 g4 8. Ka5 +-

Buňka, Vladislav
M.Bílý-60 JT, Šachová skladba, 2006
1^st Prize

h#3

4.1.1.1

3 + 14

Show Solution

1. Ke3 Sg6 2. Bd4 Sf4 3. S1c3 Bc1#
1. Bf6 Bc3 2. Sd4 Be1 3. Ke5 Bxg3#
1. Bg7 Be5 2. Kg5 Bxc7 3. Kh6 Bf4#
1. Bh8 Bg7 2. Bg4 Bf8 3. Be5 Bh6#
Four varied solutions with Bishop mate. In three solutions, magnet moves of the two Bishops on the long diagonal.

Buňka, Vladislav
Problem Paradise, 2002 (F153)

s#3

b7, h6, a4, g1: Grasshopper

15 + 4

Show Solution

1.Qe4! ZZ

1...Gd5 2.Rd8+ Kb7 3.Qb1 Gxd1#
1...Ge7 2.Se5+ Gxe4 3.Sf7 Ge1#
1...Gb4 2.Sd4+ Gxe4 3.Sb3 Ge1#

The mates are forced by retreating the possible hurdles for the black Grasshopper.

Pál Bennó (30-12-1949) Hungarian composer

Pál Bennó
[magyarsakkszerzok]

Pál Bennó composes endgame studies.

Bennó, Pál
Magyar Sakkvilбg , general
1^st Prize

+

4 + 4

Show Solution

1. Bd4 Qb8+ 2. Kh1 Qa8+ 3. Kg1 Qg8+ 4. Rg7 Qb8
{The white King must be put in a safe place and it appears that the only adequate square will be a1. A long trip starts:}
5. Kg2 Qa8+ 6. Kf2 Qb8 7. Ke3 Qe8+ 8.Kd3 Qb8 9. Rg6+ Ka5 10. Rg1 Ka6 11. Rg7 Qa8 12. Rf7 Qb8 13. Kc2 Qa8 14. Kb2 Qg2+ 15. Bf2 Qa8 16. Rh7 Qb8 17. Bd4 Qa8 18. Ka1 Qb8 19. Rh6+ Ka5 20. Rh8 Qb7 21. Rh2 Ka6 22.Ra2#

Ján Golha (30-12-1956) Slovak composer

Ján Golha

Ján Golha's bilingual (CZ/EN) website is well-known of chess composers. He proposes tourney announcements and some of their awards, links, photographs of composers, a page dedicated to some plagiarists and one page dedicated to 226 of his own problems in different formats.
Ján Golha composes mostly direct mates, helpmates and fairy problems.

Golha, Ján
17^th TT Chess Composition Microweb, 30^th Jun 2005 (No. 3)
2^nd Prize

h#3

4.1... ParrainCirce g5: Neutral Knight e3: Neutral Bishop

1 + 12 + 2

Show Solution

1.nSf3 nBf4+ 2.Sxf4 nSe5(nBe6) 3.Sfxe6 nSf7(nBf8)#
1.nBd4 nSe4+ 2.fxe4 nBc3(nSd3) 3.cxd3 nBb4(nSc4)#
1.Sc5+ Ka3 2.S7e6 nSe4+ 3.fxe4 nBf4(nSf5)#
1.Sf8 nBxg5 2.Kc5(nSf4) nSg6 3.Sxg6 nBe3(nSe4)#
Four superb echo mates.

Zalmen Kornin (30-12-1957) Brazilian composer

Zalmen Kornin
Source: O Problemista

Zalmen Kornin was a good chess player as a junior, but since 1986, as phrased on chessgames.com, he mostly retired from OTB competition and has become a composer of chess problems and studies.
He is also a writer and has collaborated with several European chess magazines.
He composes mostly direct mates, but also helpmates, selfmates, studies and retro problems.

Fans of the Babson Task can read on Chessproblem.net forum his article "Babson-Task: A Key, And Beyond" , his article "The Birth of the Babson Task", or this article on O Problemista.

Kornin, Zalmen
Tidskrift för Schack 2001
1^st Prize

#3

7 + 13

Show Solution

1.Qh6 ! (2.Qxf4+ e5 3.Qh6#/Qxe5#)

1...Sg2 2.Bb7 ~ 3.Sc8#
1...Sd3 2.Bxd7 (3.Qxe6#) and two variations:
2...Bd5 3.Sc8#
2...Sc5 3.bxc5#
1...Se2 2.Kd8 ~ 3.Bxc7#

Дмитро Михайлович Грінченко (30-12-1951) Ukrainian composer (Dmitro Mikhailovich Grinchenko)

Dmitro Grinchenko
Source: superproblem.ru

Dmitro Grinchenko started composing direct mates and had his first problem published in 1968. He made a break from the early eighties until 2006 and since then he has composed helpmates.
More details about him on superproblem.ru.

Грінченко, Дмитро Михайлович
Чорно-білі стежини (1198) 2007
Special HM

h#2

4 solutions

3 + 12

Show Solution

Helpmate Of The Future (HOTF): 2 pairs of related solutions.
1.Qxa4 Rxg5 2.Qd7 Rg8#
1.Bxb5 Rh4 2.Bd7 Rh8#
In this first pair of solutions, selfblock of d7 and alternative capture of the white Rooks (exchange of functions of the white Rooks, Zilahi theme).
1.Qa3 Ra7 2.Bb3 Rb8#
1.Bc5 Rb7 2.Ba3 Ra8#
In the second pair of solutions, Black self interference and exchange of functions of the white Rooks.