The Modern Benoni is one of the sharpest and most controversial replies to 1 d4. In return for active pieces and a queenside pawn majority, Black voluntarily inherits a position with the clear defect of a weak, backward pawn on d6, a trade-off which invariably leads to razor-sharp play. On this Chessbase DVD, International Master Andrew Martin will teach you all the nuts and bolts of this fascinating opening, shows you when to duck and when to punch with Black and tackles some of the most critical move-orders of the day. The opening is dissected, so that players of all levels will learn how the Black position ticks and the typical ideas that White may adopt to try to put the Benoni out of business.
In the final analysis, this is an inspiring tour which will encourage you to try this opening yourself!
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By playing the London System, with 1.d4 followed by 2.Nf3 and 3.Bf4, White can
avoid a theoretical discussion and instead use natural ability plus a knowledge
of plans. The weight of the struggle tends to shift towards the middlegame, but
White can also pull off devastatingly quick wins should Black be unaware of the
dangers. Against some of the most natural moves you can imagine, White often
whips up devastating attacks as can be seen in the games of David Bronstein,
Gata Kamsky, Vlatko Kovacevic and Pavel Blatny. On this DVD Davies explains how White should play against Black’s various different set-ups using twenty-one illustrative games. He also discusses how the typical pawn structures influence play later in the game, so the viewer will always know what he should be trying to do. Video running time: more than 4 hours.
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If you want to play successful chess you must pay great attention to the endgame. Because it is only if you handle the endgame correctly that you can turn an advantageous position into a full point or save half a point from an inferior position. On this DVD, Rustam Kasimdzhanov analyses the type of practical endgames which tournament players encounter on a daily basis. We are talking here about endgames which are still full of life, endgames which in the final analysis must be played out over the board. Using selected games of his own, he shows the importance of understanding positional factors such as an advantage in space, piece activity, pawn weaknesses, strong and weak squares, pawn majorities, passed pawns, etc. He explains what has to be known in order to make the correct strategic decisions and to find the correct plan in such endings. Studying the examples in this 3.5 hour long video course will certainly pay off for you in your own games. Kasimdzhanov’s outstanding and easily understandable explanations will certainly help you to substantially improve your own performance in the endgame. More information…

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For many years, the tournament year has begun with a chess double act. The Corus Tournament in Wijk, perhaps the best that the international tournament scene has to offer, is rapidly followed by the “intercontinental” event Morelia/Linares. The traditional tournament in Linares enjoyed the title of the “Wimbledon of chess”, but a few years ago ran into a period of drought with less exciting tournaments. The double round super tournament which has been played for 10 years soon got over that and moved its first round to Mexico. So all that is now water under the bridge. The journey from Morelia to Linares between the first and second series of rounds is however particularly demanding for the players. Not everyone is able to cope in the same way with that hassle, and perhaps in the second series the play of some has too often been a bit lacklustre. Others, on the other hand really come into bloom only when they reach Spain. This year the tournament produced a remarkably high number of entertaining games at the very highest level. Several of these world class players have felt called to annotate their masterpieces for the readers of ChessBase Magazine. Several other top class tournaments were being played in parallel to the tournament for super grandmasters. In the analyses in this issue of the magazine you will find above all the Aeroflot Open in Moscow – not quite such a strong field as previously - and the German Bundesliga. Amongst the openings surveyed, it is the Alekhine Defence which has attracted the greatest attention from the theoreticians, but see for yourself … 
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If you want to win with Black, you must decide which is the best strategy to achieve your aim. Should you take risks and go for the win right from move one, or should you patiently set about achieving equality and then wait for mistakes by White? Which opening should you choose and what is the role played by opening preparation? What can you do when you even have to win with Black, because, e.g., a match can only be saved by a win with Black in the very last game – a situation which has become all the more familiar because of the ever-rising number of knock-out tournaments? Alexei Shirov tries to answer these questions by referring to his own games as Black. In doing so, he describes how his own attitude to this problem has changed over his career, right up to his successes in the 2007 World Cup in Khanty-Mansiysk, in which he reached the final. Video running time: 6 h 45 m. More information…

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Psychology is one of the most important aspects of chess, yet most players put
themselves at a serious disadvantage by ignoring this aspect of the game.
Being ‘nice’ is all very well in civilian life, but in the war zone of the chess board
a more ruthless approach is required. The fact of the matter is that a good chess
player must be something of a scoundrel in order to survive.
On this DVD Davies discusses the various ways by which a player can conduct
psychological warfare, from inducing Pavlovian responses to insulting the opposition
with provocative moves. A knowledge of these methods is essential for
the serious tournament competitor, if only to avoid becoming another victim.
Video running time: more than 4 hours.
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Making the right strategic decisions belongs to the most difficult tasks at the chessboard.
But how can one enhance one’s strategic understanding and methodical play? For the
present video course Rustam has carefully selected games from his own practice which
are dominated by positional and strategic considerations, clarifying in extensive annotations
which thoughts the decisions of the grandmasters are based upon. He shows how
the game plan is made already in the first moves of the opening and then - in the ideal case
- purposefully continued step by step in the middlegame. At the end of this entertaining
and practically relevant course, you will be familiar with many positional elements like e.g.
open lines, strong and weak squares, pawn chains, isolated pawns, space advantage, pawn
majorities, hanging pawns etc., making you ready to use them for your own play. Video running time: 3:54 min.
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For nearly 20 years HIARCS has been among the very best chess programs in the world. Ever since its fi rst World Championship success in 1991 HIARCS has maintained its position as one of the world’s premier chess playing programs. As recently as December 2007 HIARCS further enhanced its reputation by winning the International Paderborn Computer Chess Championship in Germany ahead of a world class field.
Available from 28. March 2008 More information…

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For nearly 20 years HIARCS has been among the very best chess programs in the world. Ever since its fi rst World Championship success in 1991 HIARCS has maintained its position as one of the world’s premier chess playing programs. As recently as December 2007 HIARCS further enhanced its reputation by winning the International Paderborn Computer Chess Championship in Germany ahead of a world class field.
Available from 28. March 2008 More information…

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• 23.752 edited games played between Oktober 2007 and February 2008
• biggest tournament: Moscow op-B 04th: 1452 games
• World Cup ACP 2nd: 1. Radjabov
• games of players with more than 2700 rating points: World Cup ACP 2nd
  Odessa
• category 12 in Nancy (1. C. Bauer)
• Gibraltar Masters 6th (1. Nakamura after playoff)
• NEW: CBM Extra with videos in Fritztrainer format
• 3 videos with Rainer Knaak

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After the moves 1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Nc3 e6 5.Bg5 h6 6.Bh4 dxc4 7.e4 g5 8.Bg3 b5 (D43) the Anti-Moscow Gambit arises on the board which currently is one of the
most hotly contested openings in grandmaster practice. Ex-FIDE World Champion
Rustam Kasimdzhanov gives an introduction into the youngest development of this variation, starting with the game Radjabov - Anand played in August 2006. His
chronological presentation of the events is as exiting as a thriller, the ‘scenes of
crime’ being the top tournaments of the last two years and the actors the players of
the absolute world elite. At the tournament in Wijk aan Zee 2008 Topalov opened a completely new chapter of the variation by beating his archrival Kramnik in the style of the masters of the 19th century, sacrifi cing a knight with 12.Nxf7 early on. Don’t
miss this chess thriller (3.5 hours of video)
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After the moves 1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Nc3 e6 5.Bg5 h6 6.Bh4 dxc4 7.e4 g5 8.Bg3 b5 (D43) the Anti-Moscow Gambit arises on the board which currently is one of the
most hotly contested openings in grandmaster practice. Ex-FIDE World Champion
Rustam Kasimdzhanov gives an introduction into the youngest development of this variation, starting with the game Radjabov - Anand played in August 2006. His
chronological presentation of the events is as exiting as a thriller, the ‘scenes of
crime’ being the top tournaments of the last two years and the actors the players of
the absolute world elite. At the tournament in Wijk aan Zee 2008 Topalov opened a completely new chapter of the variation by beating his archrival Kramnik in the style of the masters of the 19th century, sacrifi cing a knight with 12.Nxf7 early on. Don’t
miss this chess thriller (3.5 hours of video)
More information…

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