Paul Morphy teaches the importance of rapid development

Back in the middle 1800s - around the same time that people like Billy the Kid and Wyatt Earp were making names for themselves out in the Wild West - a quiet young man from New Orleans was taking Europe by storm.

Paul Morphy's active international chess career only spanned a few years, but he changed the way the game is played. His new ideas... or his refinement of old ideas... on tempo, development and central control simply bowled over the European Masters like ten-pins.

Before Morphy's arrival on the scene, the majority of the European players subscribed to the Neo-Romantic school of play, with everything subordinated to tactics. Sacrificial brilliance was the only measuring-rod allowed. Only a cad would refuse an offered Pawn.

Morphy put an end to the Neo-Romantic school. The shock was so sudden and so traumatic that even some of the best players in the world literally didn't know what hit them. Adolf Anderssen (probably the number-two player in the world before Morphy came along) said that "Whoever plays Mr Morphy must abandon all hope of catching him in a trap or snare"... a comment that misses the point in such spectacular fashion that we have to conclude that Anderssen didn't have the slightest idea why he had lost so many games to Morphy.

It was Morphy's new ideas on development that had changed the way chess was played.

Here is an example... an off-hand game that Morphy played while attending a performance of Bellini's Norma in Paris in 1858.

Woh

This game caused quite the scandal in the tabloids the next morning. Who dares play chess during an opera??

Morphy defeated Anderssen 7-2, but lost the first game:
https://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1019047

For some reason the game doesn't show up on mobile. It's worth starting up your laptop for it.

Get it. Study it.

A First Book of Morphy by Frisco Del Rosario

An annotated collection of selected games of Paul Morphy, one of the great chess players of all time, and a master of the open game (i.e., games beginning 1.e4 e5). I highly recommend this as the first games collection book for study by the beginner-novice. One would be hard pressed to find a more instructive introductory games collection illustrating the fundamental principles of good chess; each game was selected to illustrate some fundamental chess principle(s) and/or guideline(s).

According to the author "Morphy was the first known genius at chess whose games were the first to show the relationship between the attack and the positional features of center control, development and king safety". Former World Chess Champion Bobby Fischer wrote (in 1964) that "Morphy was perhaps the most accurate player who ever lived", proclaiming that "Morphy's natural talents would be more than sufficient for him to vanquish the best twentieth century players". While Fischer's comments may be considered hyperbolic (and must be considered within the context of the time it was made), there are many legends* of chess who would agree that Morphy deserves a place in the pantheon of great chess players in history...

*The Masters on Morphy...

https://www.chess.com/clubs/forum/view/the-masters-on-morphy

The game posted above by the OP @blueemu is known as "The Opera Game", so called because it was played during an opera performance (in Paris in 1858). It is one of the most famous chess games of all time (if not the most famous)....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z-2FpiEzeYI

The game is presented on p.30 of Frisco Del Rosario's book (above).

The most astonishing thing about Morphy's performance wasn't that he was just better than all of his contemporaries. It's how much better he was.

According to modern engines his play could be rated around 2450 today. So not actually enough to become a GM. But his best opponents end up being classified around just over 2000. Morphy managed to gain a massive advantage without being able to really build on the performance of previous masters to study. It's hard to become better if no one can really challenge you anymore.

That's what I'm doing for a while now. I think it's the best learning tool I've had so far. And it's extremely pleasant, too.

Every move Morphy made had a purpose, often developing a piece while creating a threat, thus forcing his opponent to respond to his initiatives.

Morphy or Anderssen, they can be forgiven for that.

And then, maybe Morphy was inspired by Bellini's music. Or the orchestra and the singers sucked, who knows.

@7

"his play could be rated around 2450 today"
++ 2716
http://www.chessmetrics.com/cm/CM2/PeakList.asp

For those interested in opera or just curious....a taste of the opera "Norma" by Vincenzo Bellini (the opera most associated with Paul Morphy's 'Opera Game').....Here the aria duet 'Mira o Norma' performed by the great mezzo-soprano Marilyn Horne and the legendary coloratura-soprano, Joan Sutherland......these have to be (IMO) the reference performances (1970 & 1986) of this beautiful piece...

Joan Sutherland - Marilyn Horne - Mira o Norma...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GrY66tzzveY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eDi815NsruU

I agree. I would also add the recording with Montserrat Caballé and Renata Cossotto ( 1973, if I remember correctly ).

I think it was the noblemen (Morphy’s opponents) who were shame-targeted the most.

In any event, they had to twist Morphy’s arm to get him to agree to a game. And Morphy’s dispatched them as quickly as possible, so he could get back to enjoying the opera. (I would guess he rarely had balcony seats, to such a performance.)

It's very likely. I wonder if someone somewhere wrote down how it went.