Juldeh Camara - The Trendy Riti (Violin) Player

By Eric Orji - GambiaNet.com

Juldeh Camara might be a stranger to the eyes and ears of many Gambian music followers, but in achievements he is one of the leading singers and players of instruments the country has ever produced.

The folk singer cum Riti player is presently a Yellowgate Studios’ family member and he possesses a smiling pride to lean on Gambia’s strongest musical pillar.

Good news! He is getting ready to record an eleven-tracker album in the guiding shield of Elie Nachif.

It’s always a sign of marital faithfulness to give birth to a child who is a physical and mental replica of the father. Juldeh Camara never learnt to play violin (Riti), he was born into it and he grew with it. Juldeh’s grandfather was a master player of violin.

He passed the skills on to Juldeh’s father, Sheriff Camara, and without greed, Juldeh’s father blessed him with Riti skills and folk singing.

Born in 1966 to a Fula family, Juldeh, at a tender age, watched his father, with keen concentration, play the violin. He learnt every strike his father made with the instrument.

He soon pushed education aside and devoted the whole of his time in playing and mastering the instrument.

Through his growing period, the skills already acquired on the instrument attracted the attention of a number of music promoters.

In 1989, European-based promoter Foday Musa Suso commissioned Juldeh Camara to write, play violin and sing three songs in his compilation CD entitled “Ancient Heart”. The eleven-tracker CD, released by Island Records, gave Juldeh the right to three of the songs featured.

In 1993, Juldeh was contracted by tourist Knut Reisecrut at Fajara Hotel (while performing) to embark on concert tour of Norway. He toured and performed in the northern part of Norway for three weeks and featured in a CD entitled “Tramp”. Juldeh performed two songs in the CD. In early 1994 Juldeh toured Norway again, but this time to promote the album (“Tramp”).

He ended up performing in another album entitled “Clap”. Juldeh played the violin and sang backing chorus in most of the songs featured. He returned in late 1994 but unfortunately he lost contact with his promoter, Knut Reiserut.

In 1995, as Juldeh returned to his usual hotel live performances, he
discovered that the famous British Tourist Advice reduced the number of tourists at the hotels and hence there were not much shows for him.
In October 1996, Juldeh Camara got a contract with an Afro-manding group and they embarked on a tour of London. There, in a playing session he met a bass guitarist called Duncan Noble, who plays for a group called “Zoobop”.

Duncan invited Juldeh to play with the group on a Zimbabweans melody which they were combining only the instrumentation of saxophone, guitar, trumpet, organ and the drums. Juldeh Camara added his violin strikes and sang in Fula on the mixed sound. “It was a great experience and the entire group loved it,” Juldeh says “This was how my relationship with Duncan Noble began”.

In 1997 he became part of Ifang Bondi Band. In May 1998 Juldeh traveled with the band to Holland where they released an album entitled “Gis-Gis”. Juldeh contributed three songs in the 12-track CD album. He wrote the song “Kiberru”, wrote and sang “Salimata” and sang “Yolole”.

The “Kairo Songs”, a GRTS compilation album of Gambian artists, released in mid-1999, featured Juldeh’s single “Jarine To Trefal”. He backed in most of the songs featured. And that’s not how far Juldeh has gone.

He returned from another European tour some while ago. He was the main taste in the recently concluded training of visiting Swedish students on Gambia cultures, and he’s reaching further. Juldeh has acquired plenty of past, present and future splendid remarks. His greatest achievement is belonging to Yellowgate Studios.

“Knowing Elie Nachif is my biggest miracle”, he divulged. “With his
guiding hands, we are searching for the right hold on me”.