Although Emanuel Lasker and José R. Capablanca enjoyed a quiet audience while playing in a large room at the Union Club, starting with the second game they played in a separate room at the Marianao Casino. Only the players, Judge Ponce, and each player's second were permitted to remain in the room. One additional person came and went for the purpose of ferrying the moves as they were played so the audience elsewhere in the casino could follow the game.
In addition to notes by the players, I have added some that appear in Eugene Znosko-Borovsky, The Middle Game in Chess (1938). Referring to an earlier edition of this text, Capablanca wrote, "It is about the only book on [the middle game] that I consider worth reading" (A Chess Primer [1935]).
Lasker,Emanuel -- Capablanca,Jose Raul [D37]
World Championship 12th Havana (2), 17.03.1921
[Capablanca/Lasker/Znosko-Borovsky]
1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Nf3 Nbd7 5.e3
"On general principles it is better to bring the Queen's Bishop out first" (Capablanca).
5...Be7 6.Bd3 0-0 7.0-0 dxc4 8.Bxc4 c5 9.Qe2 a6
10.Rd1
10.a4 is most often played today.
10...b5 11.Bd3 Bb7 12.e4
"Played in order to develop the Queen's Bishop and thereby condemning his whole plan of development, since he could have done that before, as indicated in the previous note, and the only reason he could have had for playing e3 on the fifth move would have been to develop this Bishop via b2" (Capablanca).
12...cxd4 13.Nxd4 Ne5
14.Nb3
"Combinations beginning with 14.Bxb5 are wrong, viz., 14...axb5 15.Nxe6 fxe6 16.Rxd8 Raxd8 17.Qxb5 Nxe4 and Black has a won game" (Capablanca).
"The text move is daring. The normal move would be 14.Bc2" (Lasker).
14...Nxd3 15.Rxd3 Qc7
16.e5
"This move by White releases d5 and therefore makes Black's game easier. Meanwhile, White has no choice" (Lasker).
"White could not play 16.Bg5 because of the rejoinder 16...Nxe4" (Capablanca).
"This opens the long diagonal, and now the White's g-pawn will be under fire from Black's Q and Q B. The threat of a bishop at c5 will prevent the defensive f3 by White. How is this future menace to be parried?" (Znosko-Borovsky, Middle-Game, pp.64-65)
"Should White play 16.f3? Then 16...a5 is strong, because of the possibility of check from b6 gives the pawn on b5 enough cover. As a result, White's game will certainly get into disarray" (Lasker).
After 16.f3, Znosko-Borovsky gives 16...b4 17.Nd1 a5 "At present nearly all the white pieces are badly placed."
16...Nd5 17.Rg3 Nxc3 18.Rxc3
"18.bxc3 was seductive. Black's best answer is probably 18...Kh8 19.Be3 Be4 (19...Qxe5? 20.Bd4) 20.Bd4 Bg6 and Black has an attack on the queenside while his king is protected" (Lasker).
18...Qd7
"It was my impression that, after this move, Black had a very superior game" (Capablanca).
19.Rg3 Rfd8 20.Bh6 g6
"White, who has achieved his first object, has not yet obtained a satisfactory position, for his knight is still badly placed and the a1 rook is not yet in play" (Znosko-Borovsky).
21.Be3
To provoke Nb3-c5. (Lasker)
21...Qd5
"This leads to the exchange of one of the two Bishops, but it would be very difficult to find a better move" (Capablanca).
22.Na5 Rac8 23.Nxb7 Qxb7
"Black threatened Qb7-e4" (Lasker).
"The position is now simplified, but White still has to cope with some difficulties" (Znosko-Borovsky).
24.Bh6 Qd5 25.b3
25...Qd4
"It was probably here where Black failed to make the best move. Instead 25...Bb4 was the better move" (Capablanca).
26.Rf1 Rd5 27.Re3 Ba3
"27...Bf8 was better, as White could not very well afford to take the Bishop; he would be compelled to play first 28.Re4 to be followed later on by Bf4" (Capablanca).
28.g3 Qb2 29.Re1 Rc2
"29...Qxe2 followed by ...Bb4 was the proper course to follow" (Capablanca).
30.Qf3 Be7
"This was my thirtieth move. I was very much pressed for time and I could not make the necessary analysis to find out whether 30...Bf8 would have been a winning or a losing move. If 31.Bxf8 Kxf8 32.Qf6 Kg8 33.h4 and Black would have a very difficult position to defend" (Capablanca).
There must have been a sealed move and an adjournment here or within a couple of moves, but the sources I have examined do not indicate when the game was adjourned.
31.R3e2
"Covers a2" (Lasker).
31...Rxe2
"31...Qxa2 now would lose because of 32.Rxc2 Qxc2 33.Rc1 followed by Rc8+, etc." (Capablanca).
"Because following 31...Qxa2 is 32.Rxc2 Qxc2 33.Rc1" (Lasker).
32.Rxe2 Qb1+ 33.Kg2 Bf8 34.Bf4 h6 35.h4 b4
36.Qe4
"36.Qe3 would lead to 36...Rd1" (Lasker).
36...Qxe4+ 37.Rxe4 Kg7 38.Rc4 Bc5 39.Kf3
39...g5
"With 39...a5 40.Rc2 Bd4 41.Rd2 Bc3 42.Rxd5 exd5 43.Be3 would favor White" (Lasker).
40.hxg5 hxg5 41.Bxg5 ½-½
Lasker 2:36 - Capablanca 2:37
George A. Thomas wrote at the end of his annotations in British Chess Magazine, "A most interesting game. ... Nevertheless, the impression remains that the Lasker of ten years ago would have made more of the mid-game position."
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