tag: reviews - Page 5

Mihail Marin: Power Strategy 1

5/13/2015 – Did you ever wonder why Magnus Carlsen, Garry Kasparov or Vishy Anand need only seconds to find the right plans? Maybe because they studied chess strategy and classical games. With his DVDs on "Power Strategy" Mihail Marin helps you to do the same "with the expertise of a university professor who patiently explains difficult material in an easily understandable manner".

Alejandro Ramirez: Attacking with the Benko

5/10/2015 – The Benko Gambit is a provocative opening, in which Black sacrifices a pawn for long-term compensation. Top players like Magnus Carlsen, Garry Kasparov, and Veselin Topalov all tried this gambit occasionally or regularly. ChessBase editor Alejandro Ramirez also likes the Benko and a while ago revealed its secrets on a DVD. Which is still worth viewing.

Collins: Korchnoi Gambit against the French

5/3/2015 – If you play 1.e4 you need a line against the French. Why not try the Korchnoi Gambit 1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nd2 Nf6 4.e5 Nfd7 5.Bd3 c5 6.c3 Nc6 7.Ngf3!?. Named after one of the greatest French experts of all time it promises entertaining attacking chess against the often positional French. Priyadarshan Banjan took a closer look and enjoyed the fun of gambit play.

Marin: Winning against the King's Indian

4/30/2015 – "Do you want to learn tactics? Do you want to learn important pawn structures?", asks reviewer Davide Nastasio and recommends to study the King's Indian. With the help of renowned author and theoretician GM Mihail Marin who shows how to win against this popular opening - with the main line. At the same time Marin teaches a lot about chess.

Power Strategy 1: development is everything

4/28/2015 – Development! Development! Development! This could just as well have been the title of the first DVD in the Power Strategy series by GM Mihail Marin, whose lesson on the topic will help emphasize not only its importance, but also the myriad ways it can be leveraged, exploited or punished for lack of. A fascinating and profound presentation.

Daniel King: Test Your Rook Endgames

4/15/2015 – To know endgames is good, to know rook endgames is even better. After all, they occur more often than any other endgame. But how to play the notoriously tricky rook endgames better? Daniel King has an answer. In volume 16 of his Power Play series he helps you to understand the nature of this endgame better. Moshe Rachmuth felt his game improve immediately.

Nicholas Pert: The French Defence

4/6/2015 – Nicholas Pert, English grandmaster and experienced coach, loves the French Defence. He has played this opening in hundreds of games and it brought him many fine victories and helped him to become grandmaster. On his new ChessBase-DVD he distills this huge knowledge into a French repertoire. For Davide Nastasio this opened a window into a new world.

Master Class - José Raúl Capablanca

4/2/2015 – How does one dissect a player such as José Raúl Capablanca, considered one of the greatest talents to ever live, and described as a "chess machine". Three grandmasters do exactly that, unveiling surprises about the champion's play. Add to that tons of training questions, plus hundreds of his games analyzed by Lasker, Alekhine and Capablanca himself, and you have a DVD you must not miss!

Karsten Müller: Chess endgames

3/29/2015 – "In everything people do that is difficult enough to be interesting, there is a crunch time", the time of exercise and effort that decides about success or failure claims chess enthusiast Derek Grimmell. In chess he thinks this is the endgame. More than a good reason to practice this crucial phase of the game. Karsten Müller has excellent material to do so.

Two Knights: a tricky repertoire for White

3/27/2015 – Players who play the Italian Game must obligatorily be ready to answer the most important deviation: the Two Knights, since it is a common reply from players with black who want to narrow down the theory they need to learn. While White chooses the line, the question is really which. Andrew Martin proposes to answer that question in just 60 minutes.

Lawrence Trent: Winning with the Fantasy Variation

3/23/2015 – No fun against the Caro-Kann? Why not surprise your opponents with the Fantasy Variation 1.e4 c6 2.d4 d5 3.f3? Aggressive, creative, unexplored, difficult to deal with, but easy to learn. In 60 minutes Lawrence Trent shows you the basics of this interesting and exciting variation that is bound to lead to interesting games. Review...

Daniel King: "Power Play 10 - Calculation"

3/21/2015 – Richard Teichmann's quote "Chess is 99% tactics" exaggerates but it also emphasizes how important tactics are in chess. Just have a look at your computer. It might not know what a fortress is but its calculating power more than compensates this lack of positional refinement. But how does a human train tactics and the ability to calculate? Daniel King has the answer.

Triangle Setup - A complete defense against 1.d4

3/15/2015 – What to do against 1.d4? A question that starts to get urgent when you lose game after game when your opponents moves the annoying d-pawn two squares ahead. Grandmaster Michal Krasenkow offers help. He recommends "The Triangle Setup: A complete defense against 1.d4. A DVD that for Davide Nastasio seemed to be like an answer to his prayers.

A repertoire against the Sicilian

3/7/2015 – Bobby Fischer had no doubt what to play with White. His "best by test" choice was 1.e4. But what, then, to do against the Sicilian? Lorin D'Costa and Nick Murphy have an answer. They offer a repertoire that avoids the theoretical lines and is "an excellent guide that will provide a rich and fruitful resource for the amateur player". Review by Rory McCluckie.

Rustam Kasimdzhanov: The new McCutcheon

3/2/2015 – Wilhelm Steinitz was proud on his defensive skills but they did not help him when he faced the McCutcheon variation in the French Defence for the first time. One example that shows how dangerous the whole line is for White. Rustam Kasimdzhanov has many more and more modern examples to offer - and an exciting repertoire for players who like to play for a win.

Mihail Marin: Tactic Toolbox Benoni

2/27/2015 – The better your tools, the easier the work - no matter whether you work at the computer or if you pursue a trade. If you study chess openings the typical motifs of that opening are your tools. The better you know them, the better your results. For the Benoni player Romanian grandmaster Mihail Marin has a large box of very useful tools.

Andrew Martin: First Steps in Chess Technique

2/25/2015 – To improve your chess it helps to learn about pawn structures, the ideas behind the openings, the openings themselves, solve tactical tasks, and learn the basic and not so basic endgames. But it also helps to work on your thinking habits, to find and practice ways how to think properly and efficiently about chess positions. Andrew Martin shows you how.

Adrian Mikhalchishin: Bishop against Knight

2/22/2015 – Bishop or knight, which is the better minor piece in a given position? This question often decides the game. Adrian Mikhalchishin helps you to find an answer. In a one hour seminar, giving you the experience of a one-on-one training session, the renowned coach offers useful rules of thumb to treat bishops and knights the right way. Entertaining, instructive, helpful.

Vladimir Kramnik: My Path to the Top

2/20/2015 – Watching Vladimir Kramnik analyse his games is pure pleasure. The former World Champion eloquently reveals his thoughts during the game, showing a blend of deep and sophisticated variations with acute positional assessments. A few years back Kramnik recorded a ChessBase DVD in which he describes his "Path to the Top". It is still worth viewing - every minute of it.

Master Class Vol.3: Alexander Alekhine

2/11/2015 – Is studying chess like eating chocolates? Well, sometimes. At least, that's what Moshe Rachmuth thought when he had a look at the Fritztrainer Master Class DVD about Alexander Alekhine. Dorian Rogozenco, Mihail Marin, Oliver Reeh, and Karsten Müller present Alekhine's chess. So much good chess that it is difficult to decide what to enjoy first. A true delicacy.

Marin: Winning against King's Indian

2/9/2015 – Mihail Marin, several times Romanian champion, possesses a rare gift for a grandmaster: he is able to explain in readily comprehensible terms the ideas behind moves, variations and positions. In his latest Fritztrainer DVD he shows you how to handle the classical system of the King’s Indian, how to rely on natural play instead of chasing ghosts. Four hours of instructions from a top trainer.

ChessBase Magazine 164 – A day well spent!

2/4/2015 – "The latest issue of ChessBase Magazine, CBM 164, had just been released," writes Sagar Shah. "I decided to work with complete dedication on everything that was given in it!" The Indian IM spent a whole Sunday studying the issue, looking at analysis, solving the lessons. In a two-part review he tells us what he found and how everything in the magazine works. Don't miss it!

Enjoy, improve, and review!

1/21/2015 – ChessBase offers a lot for everyone: databases, chess engines, training DVDs for children, beginners, club players and professionals, and much more. Tell others what you think: what did you learn from a certain DVD? What did you like, what could be better? Share your opinion and experiences with thousands of readers: review ChessBase products!

The Golden Guidelines of Endgame Play

6/18/2014 – Karsten Mueller's Chess Endgames series on DVD changed endgame study for many, by making a subject often considered dull into something dynamic and pleasant to learn. However, every good thing has an end, and volume 14 represents the last in the series. Don't despair, since the good doctor has left the best for last with these golden guidelines spread out over 65 bite-sized videos.
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