Miroslav "Miro" Žbirka (21 October 1952 – 10 November 2021) was a Slovak pop and rock singer and songwriter, widely popular in 1980s Czechoslovakia. Born in Bratislava to a Slovak father and an English mother, he sang in Slovak, English, and Czech. He sometimes recorded in London, but lived in Slovakia and since early 1990s in Prague, Czech Republic, where he died.
In the late 1970s, Žbirka co-founded two Czechoslovak pop music bands, Modus and Limit. In 1982, he rose to fame by winning the annual Zlatý slavík award for the best male singer in Czechoslovakia. After the 1992 division of Czechoslovakia, he repeated this achievement in the Slovak annual Slávik Awards, coming number one in the annual end of year charts in 2002, 2004 and 2005.
Žbirka had some performances with Jon Anderson in 2012. Asteroid 5895 Žbirka, discovered by Czech astronomer Zdeňka Vávrová in 1982, was named in his honor (the official was published by the Minor Planet Center on 27 August 2019 ()). He died from pneumonia in Prague on 10 November 2021, leaving behind recorded vocals for his 15th studio album, Posledné veci (Last Things), which was completed by his son David Žbirka in Konk Studios by May 2022.
Discography
Studio albums 1980: Doktor Sen 1982: Sezónne lásky 1983: Roky a dni 1984: Nemoderný chalan 1986: Chlapec z ulice 1988: Zlomky poznania 1990: K.O. 1993: Songs for Children (designed for children) 1994: Samozrejmý svet 1997: Meky 1999: Songs for Boys & Girls (designed for children) 2001: Modrý album 2005: Dúhy 2009: Empatia 2015: Miro 2018: Double Album 2022: Posledné veci 2026: Meky Special
Export albums 1981: Doctor Dream (aka Miro and/or Like a Hero) 1982: Light of My Life 1983: Giant Step (aka Dear Boy) 1989: Step by Step
Awards
Major awards Year Nominated work Award Category Result Ref1977"Úsmev" with ModusBratislavská lýraAudience ChoiceCzechoslovak Authors1982"Atlantída""The Love Song"Villach Music Festival—Hitradio Ö3—1983"Nechodí"Bratislavská lýraCzechoslovak Authors2002"Čo bolí, to prebolí" feat. MarthaAurel AwardsSong of the Year2003HimselfBest Male Vocal Performance200420052006Hall of Fame2007Best Male Vocal PerformanceDoktor SenBest Slovak Album of All Time—Sezónne láskyModrý album2009EmpatiaAnděl AwardsAlbum of the Year
Music polls Zlatý slavík by Mladý svět, Czechoslovakia Year Nomination Category Result Ref1979Himself Male Singer198019811982198319841985198619871988198919901991
Český slavík by Mattoni, Czech Republic Year Nomination Category Result Ref2000Himself Male Singer20012002200320042005200620072008200920102011201220132014Slávik by FORZA, Slovakia Year Nomination Category Result Ref1998Himself Male Singer1999200020012002Rádio Expres Slávik#12003Male Singer200420052006200720082009201020112012
OTO by Art Production Agency, Slovakia Year Nomination Category Result Ref2001Himself Male Singer2002200320042005200620072008200920102011201220132014
References General
Specific
Bibliography
Further reading
External links
Miroslav Žbirka at Billboard