Perpetual Chess Podcast

My guest this week is 23 year old Israeli IM Asaf Givon. In addition to being a 2480 FIDE rated player, Asaf is a YouTube streamer and highly regarded chess instructor. In our conversation, Asaf gave a lot of advice on how listeners can improve their own chess games. We also touched on the ongoing FIDE Candidates tournament, talked about the storylines emerging from it, and the likely opponents of Magnus Carlsen in the next World Championship match. Asaf also gave some perspective on chess in Israel and assessed the opportunities for a chess professional there. Lastly, Asaf told a great story about the experience of playing and analyzing with GM Michael Adams. Asaf can be reached via his Youtube channel as well as through lichess and chess.com. To support the podcast go here.   . See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This week marked the triumphant return of the hilarious and informative GM Jan Gustaffson to Perpetual Chess. Jan was one of my first guests on this podcast, and it was fun to have him back. He and his buddy, GM Peter Svidler, are gearing up to cover the FIDE Candidates tournament for Chess24.com beginning March 10. Jan revealed his own favorite to win the tournament and gave detailed information about the playing style of every player in the field. We also talked about a variety of other topics, including his chess book and podcast recommendations, what it was like to work on Magnus Carlsen’s team, and whether or not we should be jealous of his life as a chess announcer. Be sure to watch the Fide Candidates on Chess24 Follow Jan on twitter here. To support the podcast go here. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

My guest this week is St. Louis based, Hungarian born GM Denes Boros.Denes is a strong and active chess player, a chess reporter, and his frequent lectures at the St. Louis Chess Club are popular events.   Denes is also a student of psychology, so we talked a lot about the intersection of psychology and chess. He offered suggestions for some common issues that plague tournament players, such as time-management and nervousness/anxiety issues. We also talked about the history of chess in Denes's native Hungary, about the upcoming FIDE candidates tournament), and lots more. Thanks to Denes for joining me. You can follow him on twitter here You can email Denes here. To support the podcast go here. . See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Chess writer, teacher and book reviewer John Hartmann is not a titled chess player, but man, does he know his chess books! In our conversation, John reveals his list of "desert island" chess books and gives chess book recommendations of all shapes and sizes. We talk of chess memoirs/game collections, books about chess tactics, endgame books, and even about chess software.  John also tells the unique story of how he got into chess as a somewhat troubled teen and how he became a book reviewer for the USCF's venerable Chess Life magazine. Lastly, John gives an overview of the increasingly popular Chess Steps curriculum and all of the details about why he finds it so helpful for his students and his chess study. You can check out John's reviews here and contact him here . You can view his full list of recommendatons here. To support the podcast go here. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Mark Crowther is the founder, editor, and writer behind the indispensable online periodical The Week In Chess (TWIC).  In our conversation, we talked about Mark’s origins, TWIC’s humble beginnings, and how he manages the workflow of writing about and publishing a relentless torrent of chess games played by top players. Mark and I also talked about the chess world more broadly. He shared a rumor he recently heard about the next FIDE election and discussed his own chess playing, plus shared book recommendations. Thanks to Mark for joining me in a great conversation. You can follow him on twitter here, or read and support The Week in Chesshere. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This week GM Elshan Moradiabadi joined me. In addition to being a former champion in Iran, Elshan is a chess trainer and author. During our interview, Elshan explained why he and his fiance, WGM Sabina Foisor, have relocated to North Carolina and how they are enjoying life there. We also discussed Iran's unique chess history- chess was banned there from 1980 to 1999.  Elshan shared the prevailing theories on the reasons for Iran's chess ban. He also explained how he was able to ascend to the GM level, despite his native country's checkered chess history. Before I let him go, we touched on some perennial Perpetual topics, such as his experiences at chess Olympiads, the role of luck vs talent in chess, book recommendations, and his favorites in the upcoming Candidates tournament. Thanks to Elshan for a great talk. You can email him here. If you enjoy this podcast, you can support it here. To take the Perpetual listener survey, go here. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This week’s guest on Perpetual Chess is two- time Canadian Chess Champion turned hedge fund analyst, GM Pascal Charbonneau. In our conversation, Pascal tells us how chess helped him break into the finance industry, and he gives advice for anyone contemplating such a transition. He also looked back fondly to a time when he was more active in chess, and talked about what he misses most.  Pascal has so many chess stories and accomplishments to share.  He has beaten Vishy Anand in a classical game and has spent time with legends like GMs Karpov and Aronian. He also talked about how he finds time to play in The Pro Chess League as a working dad. Thanks to Pascal for a great talk, you can email him here. If you enjoy this podcast, you can support it here. To take the Perpetual listener survey, go here.   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

My guest this week is Spanish Grandmaster/chess24 streamer/civil engineer Pepe Cuenca. As a chess streamer, Pepe has an inimitable and energetic style. Pepe talked about how he cultivated that style and what his not-so-secret ingredient is (Red Bull). He also recapped a recent tournament he competed in in Argentina and gave the rundown on the Spanish chess scene. Lastly, Pepe gave us some helpful recommendations. He told us which International tournaments we should attend, which chess books to read, and he helped us handicap the Candidates tournament. Follow Pepe on twitter here, or Facebook here. If you enjoy this podcast, you can support it here.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This week marks the return of the very first Perpetual Chess guest, IM Greg Shahade. With the Pro Chess League set to resume Thursday, January 18, Greg told us about the changes that he and the Chess.com team have cooked up with the goal of improving the viewer experience. He also reeled off the names of some of the top players slated to play this year (Carlsen, Anand, MVL, Caruana, among others). Greg talked about the rules that are in place to incentivize teams to recruit top players, including strong female players. Greg also named a few favorite chess books and relayed advice that he absorbed in his younger days when he took a few lessons with the legendary trainer, IM Mark Dvoretsky. Lastly, Greg and Ben reminisced about the time Greg had a chance to play Garry Kasparov in a simul in 1997. Be sure to tune in to watch the Pro Chess League starting Thursday, January 18 on chess.com. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

My guest this week is renowned chess author, International Master John Donaldson. Along with his co-author, IM Eric Tangborn, IM Donaldson recently completed and released a 5 volume biography of Bobby Fischer. So naturally, John and I did a deep dive on the life and legacy of chess legend Bobby Fischer. John tackled several unanswered questions about Fischer's life that drove him to undertake this project. He also shared some memories about the recently deceased grandmaster Bill Lombardy, with whom John spent some time shortly before he died. Following that, we discussed the venerable Mechanic's institute Chess Club in San Francisco, where John is the Director of the Chess Room. Along the way John gave some detailed and practical chess improvement advice and book recommendations. Thanks to John for joining me. You can buy his books here, and he can be emailed here.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices