December 8th

Alois Nagler (08-12-1907 - 30-05-1996) Swiss composer

Alois Nagler
[from his book "Schweizer Problemkomponisten", Chess History]

Alois Nagler was a chess tourney organizer (Zurich 1953) and composed direct mates.
He wrote the book "Schweizer Problemkomponisten" (1951).

Nagler, Alois
Neue Zürcher Zeitung, 1933

#3

8 + 5

Show Solution

1.Rb7-b3 ! ZZ

1...Kc5-d5 2.Rb3-c3 d4xc3 3.e2-e4#
1...d6-d5 2.Rb3-b6 Kc5xb6 3.Bf2xd4#

Two Rook sacrifices.

Ľudovít Lačný (08-12-1926 - 25-12-2019) Slovak composer and International Master

Ľudovít Lačný
[Juraj Lörinc]

Ľudovít Lačný was best known as the inventor of the Lacny cycle. He was the first composer to demonstrate it in 1949:

in one phase of play, the Black defences a, b and c are answered by the White mates A, B and C respectively; in another phase, those same defences a, b and c are answered by the White mates B, C and A respectively.

Juraj Lörinc selected some of Lačný's problems on his site.
Here are two of his twomovers realizing the Lačný cycle:

Lačný, Ľudovít
Przepiorka-Memorial, 1^st Nov 1949
1^st Prize

#2*

SetPlay

8 + 12

Show Solution

Set play:

1...Sh2 a 2.Qd4#[A]
1...c3 b 2.Qe4#[B]
1...c1Q c 2.Sg2#[C]

1.Sd2! (2.Sf1#)

1...Sh2 a 2.Sg2#[C]
1...c3 b 2.Qd4#[A]
1...c1Q c 2.Qe4#[B]

Lačný, Ľudovít
SVTVS, 30^th Jun 1954
1^st Prize

#2*

8 + 10

Show Solution

Set play:

1...Sd6[a] 2.Sd3#[A]
1...Rc4/Bd4[b] 2.Sxc4#[B]
1...Sxe6[c] 2.Bf6#[C]
1...Rg5/Rg7 2.Sc4#[B]/Qf4# ; 1...Rf4 2.Qxf4#

1.Sd4! (2.Sxc6#/Rf5#)

1...Sd6[a] 2.Bf6#[C]
1...Bxd4[b] 2.Sd3#[A]
1...Se6[c] 2.Sc4#[B]
1...Rg5 2.Re1#/Qe3#/Qf4#/Sxc6# ; 1...Rg6/Rf4 2.Qf4# ; 1...Rxd4 2.Qg5# ; 1...Qa4/Sc5/Sxd8/Sa5/Se8/Sb5/Sa6/Bd5 2.Rf5# ; 1...Sd5 2.Rf5#/Sc4#[B] ; 1...Bh7 2.Sc4#[B]/Sxc6# ; 1...Be6 2.Sxc6#

Bruno Kampmann (08-12-1948) French composer

Bruno Kampmann
[Vichy Enchères]

Bruno Kampmann composes fairy problems, often in collaboration with other French fairy composers (such as Maryan Kerhuel), and is the editor of the fairy tanagra section of French magazine Phenix.
More details about his passion for wind instruments can be read here.

Kampmann, Bruno
Phénix, 1996
1^st Prize

#3

e5, h3, e2, g2: Nightrider

6 + 11

Show Solution

1.Nd3 ! (threat 2.Sh5+ Rf5 3.Re5#/Nb7#)
1...Ngf4 2.Rxg6+! A Nxg6 3.Re6# B (not 2.Sd5? Qxd5!)
1...Nhf4 2.Re6+! B Nxe6 3.Sd5# C (not 2.Rxg6?)
1...Nef4 2.Sd5+! C Nxd5 3.Rxg6# A (not 2.Re6+? Nxe6 3.Rxg6+ Ke7
Holzhausen interferences.
The judge's comments can be found here.

Roberto A. Osorio (08-12-1953) Argentinian composer and FIDE Master

Roberto A. Osorio
[© Hannu Harkola]

Roberto Osorio is a retro composer and often composes in collaboration with Jorge Lois. He is the retro column editor of the Macedonian magazine "Orbit".
More about him on Problemistas Ajedrez.

Osorio, Roberto A.
Messigny, 2011
1^st Prize

SPG 18

14 + 16

Show Solution

1. h3 d6 2. Rh2 Bxh3 3. g4 Kd7 4. Rg2 Kc8 5. Rg3 Sd7 6. Rf3 Kb8 7. Rf6 gxf6 8. g5 Bh6 9. g6 Bf4 10. g7 Sh6 11. g8=R Sf8 12. Rg2 Rg8 13. Rh2 Rg2 14. Rh1 Bh2 15. f4 Rf2 16. Bg2 Sg8 17. Bf3 Bg2 18. Sh3 h6

Michael Roxlau (08-12-1957) German composer

Michael Roxlau

Michael Roxlau is an endgame studies composer. A selection of 13 beautiful studies by Michael Roxlau are shown on the arves.org Hall of Fame (thank you Peter for the link).

Roxlau, Michael
Gurgenidze,D-50 JT EG, 2004
1^st-2^nd Special Prize

+

6 + 10

Show Solution

1. d7 Ke7
{1... g1=Q 2. d8=Q Bxh5+ 3. Kh8 Qg6 4. Re7+ Kf5 5. Qd7+ Kg5 6. Bxd4 +-}
2. Bc5+ Kd8 3. Bb6 Ke7 4. d8=Q+ ! Kxd8 5. Kf6 ! c5 6. Rg7+ Ke8 7. Re7+ Kf8 8. Rxb7
{8. Bxc5 ? b6 9. Bd6 Bxh5 10. f3 g1=Q 11. Re1+ Kg8 12. Rxg1+ Bg6 13. Bxb4 Sc3 =}
8... Ke8 9. Re7+ Kf8 10. Bxc5 Bxh5
{10... h6 11. Re4+ +-}
11. f3 ! Sa3 
{11... h6 12. Rb7+ Kg8 13. Rg7+ Kh8 14. Bxd4 +-}
12. Rb7+ Ke8 13. Ke6 Kd8 14. Bd6 Bf7+ 15. Rxf7 Kc8 16. Rc7+ Kb8 17. Rg7+ Kc8 18. Kd5 ! Sb5 19. Kc6 ! Nxd6 20. Rg8+ Se8 21. Rxe8#

Roxlau, Michael
Die Schwalbe, 2001 (11069)
3^rd Prize

=

10 + 3

Show Solution

1. Se1 ! 
{1. Se5 ? Re3 ! 2. Sd3 Sd2 3. Ba2 Rf3 -+}
1... Rf2 ! 
{1... Re3 2. Sg2 Re2 3. Kf1 ! =}
2. Sd3 Rf6 ! 
{2... Rf3 3. Se1 =}
3. Sc5 ! 
{3. Sc1 ? Sd2 4. Se2+ Kh3 5. Kh1 Rf1+ 6. Sg1+ Kg3 -+}
3... Sd2 4. Se4+ ! Sxe4 5. c3 ! 
{5. c4 ? Sd2 6. Bf5 Rf8 ! 7. Sb6 Rh8 8. Be4 Rh2 ! -+}
5... Sd2 6. Bf5 Rf8 ! 7. Sb6 ! Rh8 8. Be4 ! Rh2 ! 
{8... Sxe4 9. g7 =}
9. Sc4 ! Sxc4 10. Kf1 ! 
{10. g7 ? Re2 11. Kf1 Rxe4 12. g8=Q Sd2+ 13. Kg1 Re1#}
10... Sd2+ 11. Ke1 Sxe4 12. g7 ! 
{12. e7 ? Kf3 ! 13. Kd1 Sxc3+ 14. Kc1 Ke3 ! 15. e8=Q+ Kd3 -+; 12. Kd1 ? Sxc3+ 13. Kc1 Rh8 ! 14. e7 Sd5 -+}
12... Sxc3 ! 
{12... Kf3 13. Kd1 Sxc3+ 14. Kc1 Ke3 15. g8=Q = }
13. e7 !
{13. g8=Q ? Re2+ 14. Kf1 Rd2 -+}
13... Re2+ 14. Kf1 Rh2 
{14... Rd2 ? 15. e8=Q}
15. Ke1 
{15. Kg1 ? Rd2 -+}
15... Re2+ 16. Kf1 Rf2+ 17. Ke1 draw

Olaf Jenkner (08-12-1963) German composer

Olaf Jenkner
(3rd from left to right, between Hans Gruber & Günter Büsing)
[Die Schwalbe]

Olaf Jenkner is a mathematician and author of the Orthodox Chess Problem Solving program Gustav.
He composes direct mates and selfmates.

Jenkner, Olaf
Schach (magazine) May 2012 (17447)

s#11

11 + 2

Show Solution

1. Rgh6 ! Rxh6 2. Rg8+ Kh7 3. f7 Rxh5 4. f8S+ Kh6 5. Rgh4 Rxh4 6. R5g6+ Kh5 7. e8Q Rxh3 8. Qe2+ Kh4 9. Rg1 Rxh2 10. Sg6+ Kh3 11. Rh1 Rxh1#
Systematic sacrifice of white Rooks on the h-file.