In the modern classic Secrets of Spectacular Chess , Jonathan Levitt and David Friedgood shared their joy and appreciation of chess beauty, engulfing readers with a wealth of amazing and magnificent examples from the aesthetic side of the game. More than this, they showed how this fascinating subject could actually be analysed, and how this could help players improve the practical side of their game. Now the authors have produced a much awaited and largely expanded second edition, in which they present further thoughts, provide many new mesmerizing examples of games, studies and problems, and revisit previous material to explain how the theory has developed. This book captures the imagination; read it and become hypnotized by the power and beauty of chess!
- A new expanded edition, with 50% new material
- An enthralling guide to the artistry of chess
- Ideal for players of all levels
Jonathan Levitt is an experienced Grandmaster who has numerous tournament successes to his name, including winning the 2005 Staunton Memorial. A renowned chess teacher, he has been involved in coaching some of the UK"es top young players. He organized the inaugural 1996 and 1997 Schools Chess Problem Solving Championship and has composed several prize-winning problems.
David Friedgood is a former South African Champion who is now settled in the UK. He"es a FIDE Master, an International Master of Chess Solving, and has won the British Chess Solving title no less than five times. He has been running the Problem World column in British Chess Magazine since 1995.
Brief Description
In the modern classic Secrets of Spectacular Chess , Jonathan Levitt and David Friedgood shared their joy and appreciation of chess beauty, engulfing readers with a wealth of amazing and magnificent examples from the aesthetic side of the game. Now the authors have produced a much awaited and largely expanded second edition, in which they present further thoughts on chess beauty and provide many new mesmerizing examples of games, studies and problems.
Content:
007 Preface to the Second Edition
011 Preface to the First Edition
012 Symbols
013 Notation
015 Foreword by John Nunn
021 Black Part One: Background and Context
023 1 Introduction
023 The Importance of Chess Aesthetics
025 Fantasy and Motivation
029 A Brief History of Beautiful Chess Ideas
034 Previous Work in the Field
036 Review of recent Literature
044 Philosophical Perspective: Art, Analogies and Taste
047 Our Four Elements and why we have introduced them
049 Limitations of our Method
052 Part Two: The Elements of Chess Beauty
054 2 Paradox
056 The Paradox of Material
067 Breaking the Rules
073 The Paradox of Set Play
075 3 Depth
075 Depth, Length and Breadth
079 Small Change
082 Negative Depth
083 Further Aspects of Depth
089 4 Geometry
091 Graphic Effects
099 Optical Logic
114 The Extended Meaning of Chess Geometry
119 5 Flow
119 Smooth and Turbulent Flow
126 Flow and Technique
135 Part Three: Sampling the Spectacular
136 6 The Poetry of War: The Aesthetics of Practical Play
138 Beauty in the Opening
142 Beauty in the Middlegame
145 Beauty in the Endgame
146 Selected Games
170 7 Tactical Fantasies: The Charm of Studies
172 Practical Player or Composer
175 Domination and the Paradox of Positional Draw
180 Beauty, Truth and the Computer
185 Assorted Brilliance
198 Tightness and Overall Effect
200 Complete Studies
204 Exercises
206 8 Art for Art's Sake: The Delights of Chess Problems
207 Bohemian Problems
209 The Logical School
225 The Strategic School
222 Longer Strategic Problems
229 Exercises
231 9 The Weird and the Wonderful: Unorthodox Problems
231 Helpmates
237 Selfmates
241 Series-movers
243 A Step Backwards: Retrograde Analysis
246 Exercises
248 10 Further considerations on Chess Aesthetics
248 Feedback on The Theory
250 Power and Personal Preference
252 Beauty and Difficulty
253 Light or Heavy?
256 Help from the Other Side
262 Even Weirder, even more Wonderful...
270 11 Solutions to Exercises
276 Bibliography
279 Index of Players and Composers
285 Index of Openings, Themes and Definitions | 
