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The Sorcerer's Apprentice By: David Bronstein & Tom Furstenberg. A softcover edition published by Everyman Chess in 1997. Picture cover boards are clean & bright, binding is tight & strong, no marks or inscriptions, Packaging and Postage within South Africa R50-00. T h e s o r c e r e r ' s a p p r e n t i c e d a v i d b r o n s t e i n a n d t o m f u r s t e n b e r g c a d o g a n chess the sorcerer's apprentice 40 recommendations Log In Register Most Popular.
A major major disappointment. Seriously, this is probably the worst book I've ever seen from a great player (and I don't even exempt Reshevsky's offerings from that remark). I guess I should've realized from the beginning that I was in for a letdown with the early chapter of advice to beginners. Then I came across a chapter of games with one position from each diagrammed.and not really much of an explanation about any of it (and certainly no annotations or words of wisdom about the rest of the A major major disappointment. Seriously, this is probably the worst book I've ever seen from a great player (and I don't even exempt Reshevsky's offerings from that remark). I guess I should've realized from the beginning that I was in for a letdown with the early chapter of advice to beginners.
Then I came across a chapter of games with one position from each diagrammed.and not really much of an explanation about any of it (and certainly no annotations or words of wisdom about the rest of the moves). Later on there were a bunch of games 'with diagrams' (which apparently were deemed so illuminating that they would take the place of notes). And we finished up with a slew of 'picturesque' games (although how that adjective applied to some of them was beyond all conjecture on my part).
I'm not sure what was supposed to be so terribly eye-catching about his 120-move queen ending loss to Alexander, for example. The only really usable section of this book was the 50 annotated games. But even here (as throughout) Bronstein comes off like a thorough-going space cadet. Seriously, he sounds like he's just tumbled out of Spicoli's van, and you're barely able to discern his vague outline through a haze of smoke while he coughs up his latest imponderable dictum (no doubt about it, the man definitely puts the 'sage' in 'sagely'). In addition to all of this, his snide little ongoing spat with Botvinnik infuses the pages and belies his whole message of Love of Chess and Being Above All Competition, one which he is so obviously trying to embody. Truthfully, I would've given this godawful mess 1 star, but a collection of 200 Bronstein games (even if they are largely unannotated) has to be worth something anyway.
Contents. Early life David Bronstein was born in, to parents.
Growing up in a poor family, he learned chess at age six from his grandfather. As a youth in, he was trained by the renowned International Master.
He finished second in the Kiev Championship when he was only 15, and achieved the Soviet Master title at age 16 for his second-place result in the 1940, behind, with whom he became close friends both on and off the chessboard. He later went on to marry Boleslavsky's daughter, Tatiana, in 1984.
After completing high school in spring 1941, his plans to study at were interrupted by the spread of throughout eastern Europe in the early 1940s. He had begun play in the 1941 semifinal of the Soviet Championship, but this event was cancelled as war began. Shortly after the war's conclusion, he began attending where he studied for approximately one year. Judged unfit for military service, Bronstein spent the war performing various jobs; this included doing some reconstruction of war-damaged buildings and other clerical/labor type jobs.
Also during the war, his father, Johonon, was unfairly imprisoned for several years in the and was detained without substantial evidence of committing any crimes, it was later revealed. The rumor that Bronstein was related to the disgraced former Soviet Communist leader (whose real family name was Bronstein), was treated as unconfirmed, but doubtful, by Bronstein in his book The Sorcerer's Apprentice (1995). This belief could have explained the imprisonment of Bronstein's father. Towards Grandmaster With the tide turning towards an eventual war victory over the invaders, Bronstein was able to once again play some competitive chess. His first top-standard Soviet event was the 1944, where he won his individual game against eventual winner (and soon-to-be world champion). Bronstein moved to Moscow as the war wound up.
Theretofore seen as a promising but essentially unproven young player, one of dozens in the deep Soviet vanguard, he raised his playing level dramatically to place third in the 1945 USSR Championship. This result earned him a place on the Soviet team; he won both his games played on board ten, helping the Soviet team achieve victory in the famous 1945. He then competed successfully in several team matches, and gradually proved he belonged in the Soviet chess elite.
Bronstein tied for first place in the Soviet Championships of both 1948 and 1949. World Title Challenger (1948–1951) Bronstein's first major international tournament success occurred at the of 1948, which he won. His qualifying place in this event came through nominations from foreign chess federations. He earned his title in 1950, when, the World Chess Federation, formalized the process. His Interzonal win qualified him for the of 1950 in.
Bronstein became the eventual Candidates' winner over Boleslavsky in a (Moscow) 1950 playoff match, following two overtime match games, after the two had tied in Budapest, and then again remained level over the 12 scheduled match games. The period 1945–50 saw a meteoric rise in Bronstein's development, as he reached the challenge match, in 1951. 1951 World Championship match against Botvinnik Bronstein is widely considered to be one of the greatest players not to have won the World Championship. He came close to that goal when he tied the 12–12 with, the reigning champion.
Each player won five games, and the remaining 14 games were drawn. In a match where the lead swung back and forth several times, the two players tested each other in a wide variety of opening formations, and every game (except the 24th) was full-blooded and played hard to a clear finish.
Bronstein often avoided lines he had favored in earlier events, and frequently adopted Botvinnik's own preferred variations. This strategy seemed to catch Botvinnik by surprise; the champion had not played competitively for three years since winning the title in 1948. The quality of play was very high by both players, although Botvinnik would later complain of his own weak play. He only grudgingly acknowledged Bronstein's huge talent. Bronstein claimed four of his five match wins by deep combinational play, winning before adjournment in highly complex fashion. He led by one point with two games to go, but lost the 23rd game and the final (24th) game.
Under rules, the title remained with the holder, and Bronstein was never to come so close again. Botvinnik wrote that Bronstein's failure was caused by a tendency to underestimate technique, and a lack of ability in simple positions.
Botvinnik won four virtually level endgames after the adjournments, and his fifth win came in an endgame which Bronstein resigned at move 40. These adjourned games made up four of Botvinnik's five match wins; Botvinnik had no more than a minimal advantage in these games when they were adjourned at move 40. It has been alleged by some that Bronstein was forced by the Soviet authorities to throw this match, and to allow Botvinnik to win. Bronstein never confirmed this, but did later write that it was likely better that he didn't win the world title, since his free-spirited, artistic personality would have been at odds with bureaucracy.
Bronstein's father was sometimes secretly in the audience during the 1951 title match games, at a time when he was not officially permitted in Moscow. 1953 Candidates Bronstein challenged throughout at the in Switzerland and finished tied for second through fourth places, together with Keres and, 2 points behind the winner. Bronstein's book on the tournament is considered a classic. It has been speculated that there was pressure on the Soviet players to collude, to ensure that a Soviet player would win. Even in the wake of, however, Bronstein only partially confirmed these rumors in his public statements or writings, admitting only to 'strong psychological pressure' being applied, and that it was up to Bronstein himself whether to decide to give in to this pressure.
In his final book, published in 2007, shortly after his death, Bronstein went further and alleged that he and Keres were pressured to draw their games with Smyslov, in order to ensure that Smyslov would win ahead of Reshevsky (see ). It is sometimes further alleged that Smyslov was favoured over Bronstein and Keres because he was Russian and they were not (Jewish-Ukrainian and Estonian respectively). Career after 1953.
Bronstein in 1963 The 1953 Candidates result qualified him directly for the 1955 Interzonal, which he won with an unbeaten score. From there it was on to another near miss in the 1956 Candidates' tournament in, where he wound up in a large tie for third through seventh places, behind winner Smyslov and runner-up Keres. Bronstein had to qualify for the 1958 Interzonal, and did so by placing third at the USSR Championship, 1958. At the 1958 Interzonal in, Bronstein, who had been picked as clear pre-event favorite by, missed moving on to the 1959 Candidates' by half a point, dropping a last-round game to the much weaker Filipino, when the electrical power failed due to a thunderstorm during the game, and he was unable to regain concentration. Bronstein missed qualification at the Soviet stage for the 1962 cycle. Then at the Amsterdam 1964 Interzonal, Bronstein scored very well, but only three Soviets could advance, by a rule, and he finished behind countrymen Smyslov, and, who finished as the joint winners, along with Larsen. His last Interzonal was at age 49 when he finished sixth at 1973.
Bronstein took many first prizes in tournaments, among the most notable being the of 1948 (jointly with ) and 1949 (jointly with Smyslov). He also tied for second place at the Soviet Championships of 1957 and 1964–65. He tied first with at the in 1952 at.
Bronstein was also a six-time winner of the, and represented the USSR at the of, and, winning board prizes at each of them, and losing just one of his 49 games in those events. Along the way he won four Olympiad team gold medals.
In the 1954 team match against the USA (held in New York), Bronstein scored an almost unheard-of sweep at this level of play, winning all four of his games on second board. Further major tournament victories were achieved at 1953–54, 1954, 1957, Moscow 1959, 1966, 1968, 1970, 1971, 1976, 1976, 1977, and 1978. Legacy and later years.
Final position after 39.Rxh6+ 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.0-0 Nxe4 6.d4 b5 7.Bb3 d5 8.dxe5 Be6 9.c3 Be7 10.Bc2 0-0 11.Qe2 f5 12.exf6 Bxf6 13.Nbd2 Bf5 14.Nxe4 Bxe4 15.Bxe4 dxe4 16.Qxe4 Qd7 17.Bf4 Rae8 18.Qc2 Bh4 19.Bg3 Bxg3 20.hxg3 Ne5 21.Nxe5 Rxe5 22.Rfe1 Rd5 23.Rad1 c5 24.a4 Rd8 25.Rxd5 Qxd5 26.axb5 axb5 27.Qe2 b4 28.cxb4 cxb4 29.Qg4 b3 30.Kh2 Qf7 31.Qg5 Rd7 32.f3 h6 33.Qe3 Rd8 34.g4 Kh8 35.Qb6 Rd2 36.Qb8+ Kh7 37.Re8 Qxf3 38.Rh8+ Kg6 39.Rxh6+ (see diagram) Bronstein: Korchnoi remained unruffled. He wrote down my move on his scoresheet and began carefully studying the position. I think it seemed incredible to him that White could sacrifice his last rook (I myself could not believe my eyes!). And only when he had convinced himself, did he stop the clocks. These are the variations: A) 39.Kf7 40.Qc7+ Kg8 41.Qc8+ Kf7 42.Qe6+ Kf8 43.Rh8 mate; B) 39.Kg5 40.Qe5+ Kxg4 41.Rg6+ Kh4 42.Qg5 mate; C) 39.gxh6 40.Qg8+ Kf6 41.Qf8+; D) 39.Kxh6 40.Qh8+ Kg6 41.Qh5+ Kf6 42.g5+! Notable games. The 17-year-old Bronstein meets the Chairman of the USSR Classification Committee, who had just awarded him the title of Master.
A stunning original tactical onslaught which attracted worldwide acclaim. Bronstein offers a far-seeing exchange sacrifice, which ties Black up, leading to a beautiful strategical win. Although Bronstein had a slight minus record against Botvinnik, he beat Botvinnik several times with the black pieces. Here's one of his wins from their 1951 World Championship match. A very deep combination exploits Black's back-rank weakness, giving Bronstein a one-game lead with two to play. Beforehand, Bronstein was ordered by Soviet chess authorities to win this crucial game, in order to stop Reshevsky's chances of winning the tournament.
He gives it everything he has, and triumphs over stout defense. This game was chosen by Grandmaster as his favourite game by another player and he analyses it in the book Learn from the Grandmasters. A dramatic game between two attacking geniuses. This virtuoso game sees Bronstein sacrifice three pawns to open queenside lines into Aloni's king position. The oldest known game between a grandmaster and a computer. A surprising and deep positional breakthrough.
The most interesting part of the game starts with White's 42nd move, trying to sacrifice an exchange in order to achieve a seemingly sterile blocked position. Bronstein offers an original, problematic pawn sacrifice, which Polugaevsky accepts, leaving him tied up for the rest of the game; Bronstein converts his positional advantage with deep tactics.
A long-range rook sacrifice eventually brings home the point in scintillating style to win the First Brilliancy Prize. Kupreichik goes toe-to-toe with Bronstein in the King's Indian, and the old master shows the young one a trick or two!. Another young master experiences Bronstein's aging yet potent chess powers. A dazzling tactical display leaves White helpless in only 26 moves. In a very deep theoretical variation, Bronstein comes up with some new ideas, and even Najdorf guru Browne, a six-time U.S. Champion, can't find his way.
See also. – for the Bronstein delay Notes.