11.29.16 Mark Evgenievich Taimanov, former Soviet Grandmaster and concert pianist, passed away on Monday, November 28th in St. Petersburg, Russia at the age of 90. In 1953, he participated in the Zurich International Tournament in which he finished ninth in front of Averbakh, Boleslavsky, Szabo, Gligoric, Euwe, and Stahlberg. In 1971, he qualified for the Candidates Tournament during which he suffered a career-defining loss at the hands of the future American World Champion Bobby Fischer. After his match with Fischer, Taimanov famously said, "At least I still have my music." In contrast to the current World Champion, Magnus Carlsen, who considers chess primarily as a sport, Taimanov approached the game as an art and played "as an artist."

Mark Taimanov, World-Class Chess and Piano Player, Dies at 90 New York Times

In Memoriam Mark Taimanov (1926-2016) ChessBase