Catalog Search Results
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2015.
Description
Chess is a sport, a science, and an art. For more than a thousand years, people around the world have enjoyed this game of skill and tactics and intellectual prowess. From Parisian nightclubs to Hollywood films to everyday dining rooms and dens, you can find people furrowing their brows in concentration over their next strategic move. The fun of the game is that anyone can play, and there is always something more to learn—especially with the right...
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2015.
Description
Continue your study of endgames, especially those involving the king and one or more pawns. Here you’ll find out how to avoid—or create—stalemates and draws, as well as the critical techniques for getting pawns to the end of the board—or blocking those dangerous pawn advances..
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2015.
Description
Famous chess players are some of the most fascinating figures in history. Enrich your understanding of tactics by learning about four of the most famous attacking players who ever lived: Paul Morphy, Alexander Alekhine, Mikhail Tal and Garry Kasparov. Examine several of their games to get a feel for their playing style..
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2015.
Description
Meet several key players who advanced the game from the Romantic to the Modern era. In addition to learning about the personalities of players such as Andre Philidor, Wilhelm Steinitz, Siegbert Tarrasch, and Aron Nimzowitsch, you’ll study some of their most interesting games to get a feel for how chess became much deeper than before..
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2015.
Description
Build your arsenal of tactical skills by looking for winning patterns on the board. After covering three go-to punches—pins, skewers, and forks—Mr. Silman turns to decoys, double attacks, discovered attacks, and more. Armed with these patterns of play, you now have a major tactical advantage..
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2016.
Description
Welcome to the guan, or tai chi studio. Start your journey on the path of mastery by discovering how taijiquan is a complex system that weaves together martial artistry, the pursuit of health and longevity, and the philosophy of harmony and balance. Then, practice several stances that you will use throughout the Yang-style 40-movement form, and learn your first tai chi principle.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2016.
Description
These 24 half-hour lessons, taught by an International Master Tai Chi Instructor, take you deeply into the practice, focusing on a routine known as the Yang-style 40-movement form. Known as moving meditation, tai chi is part exercise, part relaxation and is accessible to everyone, regardless of age of the current level of physical fitness.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2015.
Description
Almost everyone enjoys tactics, but tactics are not the most important element of the game. Begin the first of several lessons on positional play and chess strategy, starting with the rooks. Learn why and how to create an open file and employ your rooks to best advantage. See examples of these mighty pieces at work..
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2015.
Description
In this lesson, you’ll find out why “pawns are the soul of chess.” Train your eye to see the pawn structures of a game and their strategic implications. After honing your ability to read a position and see patterns, study a few strategies for making the most out of the pawns—including pawn chains, the passed pawn, the Grunfeld Defense center, and more..
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2015.
Description
As you’ve seen throughout the course, the chess greats all have a unique approach to the game, often rooted in how they understand other players. Round out the course by studying four final champions—Jose Raul Capablanca, Vera Menchik, Bobby Fischer, and Hou Yifan—to analyze their style of play and enjoy the benefits of thinking about your own favorite chess hero..
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2015.
Description
Continue your study of pawn movements by examining a number of potential weaknesses. Mr. Silman helps you notice and make use of vulnerabilities such as isolated pawns and doubled pawns. By sharpening your powers of observation, your chess game will take a giant leap forward..
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2015.
Description
Although humble, pawns are the most complex pieces on the chessboard. Meanwhile, the leaping knights are perhaps the strangest pieces. Learn how these two pieces move and what strategies to employ with them to control the board. Look at a few situations that test what you’ve learned..
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2016.
Description
Continue your study of the principles of tai chi with the art's most fundamental concept: when you're in harmony and balance, everything works better. Consider how this applies to your body, your mind, and your relationships with others. Learn the first two movements of the Yang-style 40 form: commencing and grasp the bird's tail.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2016.
Description
Movements in tai chi are graceful, balanced, and unhurried, and this is accomplished through mindful awareness of your body, thoughts, and emotions. Mindfulness is an essential element of tai chi and a vital tool for a harmonious life. Use this awareness as you learn the next two movements of the form: single whip and step up and raise hands.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2016.
Description
Learn the qigong form 8 pieces of brocade, which is an excellent warm-up or adjunct to tai chi chuan. Review all of the moves you have learned so far, and get strategies for how to do the form in a small space. With these techniques, you can practice anywhere-which means you'll practice more often.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2016.
Description
When your clear intention guides the chi and the chi directs the body, then your external actions are a reflection of your internal motivations. This unifies you into a coherent being, physicality led by spirit. Continue your study of the form with high pat on horse and kick with right heel.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2016.
Description
Explore the history of silk and its connection to the principles of tai chi. Learn exercises to develop the motions of silk reeling and silk pulling, which are advanced techniques hidden within many form movements. Feel this smoothness and connection as you continue with the form with turn body and kick with heel and needle at the bottom of the sea.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2016.
Description
Continue your consideration of the eight original intentions and their application to conflict. Ponder the wisdom of the Dao De Jing, and discover the five recommendations for cultivating the spirit of a peaceful warrior, as codified by the legendary founder of tai chi. Learn the next movements in the form: rooster stands on one leg and punch groin.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2016.
Description
Learn the game of pushing hands with a partner, an essential pillar of tai chi chuan. This exercise will increase your sensitivity and understanding as well as your martial prowess. The secret: instead of focusing on how to defeat the opponent, a tai chi master focuses on recreating harmony.
Publisher
The Great Courses
Pub. Date
2016.
Description
Add the last movements of the form: shoot the tiger, sealing and closing, cross hands, and closing form. Go through the entire 40-movement form, feeling the flow. Ponder the significance of your journey to tai chi mastery, and consider the next steps on your path-because studying the art of tai chi chuan yields rewards for a lifetime.
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