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| Others writings : Dioula - Jula Dekeray - Edhioula Diekere |
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Way of playing and specific tuning : Sawta or Hardino |
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Type malinkais du Haut-Niger - Col. FREY, Côte occidentale d'Afrique - vues, scènes, croquis de Jeanniot, Bretennier,
Darondeau, Fernando, Nousveaux, Phillipe - 1890 - © Gallica (Bnf)
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 In XIX° century, in the Manda area (Gambia), Jekereh Bayo nicknamed « Jula Jekere » was a wealthy trader
(« jula », trader in Mandenka), who decided, as a flamboyant gesture, to celebrate Tobaski(1) ten days later than usual. He offered large sums of money to the kings of the area to ensure their cooperation in
celebrating the prayer day and feast on a different day. He announced to his jèlílua jèlí (plural, jèlílu) is a bard, loremaster, and praise-singer in the
Manding areas whose functions are story-telling, speaking about lineages, singing and playing music as he want and hear it... Read more. : « Go tell the mansa of Wuli, Jekere will
pray this year. » It was reported that, to celebrate the end of Ramadan, he would sacrifice over one hundred sheep, one hundred cows, one hundred goats, and one hundred horses. And as an
extravagant gesture, he said he would sacrifice also one hundred men (may be slaves). His brother tried to stop him, but was unsuccessful in his plea, so he went to the Griots for their help.
At the brother's urging, two jèlílua jèlí (plural, jèlílu) is a bard,
loremaster, and praise-singer in the Manding areas whose functions are story-telling, speaking about lineages, singing and playing music as he want and hear it... Read more. - Nyamen Lamin
and Nyamen Karunka (ancestors of Foday Musa Suso) - went to Jekereh's house and tried to convince Jula Jekereh to let the people go. At night after dinner they took their instruments, and began to
play this song :
« Jula Jekereh, Jula Jekereh,
You are the greatest, richest person in this area.
Tomorrow is your festival.
Please kill the animals, but let the people go. »
Jula Jekereh said, « I like what the jèlílua jèlí (plural, jèlílu) is a
bard, loremaster, and praise-singer in the Manding areas whose functions are story-telling, speaking about lineages, singing and playing music as he want and hear it... Read more.
are saying. I will release the human beings. » And this became Jula Jekereh's song.
« Jula Jekere » was, according to Amadu Bansang
JobartehAmadu Bansang Jobarteh (1915, Tambasan Sang - 8 April 2001, Bansang, Gambia) was a famous korafolá in his country (Gambia), hailing from the great jèlílu family of the Diabate from
Gambia and Mali... Read more., derived from an older piece called JanjonbaLegends tell that «Janjon» was (nick?) name of a sorcerer chaman like
with great surnatural powers in the very early times of the Manding... Read more.. And it was played, in the beginning, on the n'koniThe n'koni
is a melodic instrument hailing from the Fulani, used since antiquity by that ethnic group. In the beginning, it was made with a single string and was probably created by the shepherds using it for
entertainment when they followed the transhumance of their flocks... Read more.. Then, it has been adapted to kora.
sources : Roderic Knight and booklet notes of
Foday Musa Suso, CD Jali Kunda : Griots of West Africa and Beyond and Amadu Bansang Jobarteh,
Tabara,
Music of The World - 1993
There are numerous recordings of that song by many korafoláluA kora player is called korafolá (who is able to make the kora talk) - korafolálu, plural. who loved it, but the ones whose names are attached to it are Jali Nyama Susso
Jali Nyama Suso was a very great korafolá who has been world wide famous in the 1970s... Read more. and Alhaj Bai KontehAlhaji Bai Konté was a korafolá very famous in Gambia, like Jali Nyama Suso, thus less world popular. His legacy is huge for he had been the creator of a new
proeminent kora style and school, the yeyengo style ... Read more., but the king of the kora, Soundioulou CissokhoBorn in 1921 in
Ziguinchor in Casamance, Kémokho Kandara Bamody Cissokho known as Soundioulou Cissokho is the son of the famous korafolá, Kimintang Cissokho alias Bah Djaly, jèlí of the king Abdou N'Diaye, and of
Caroline Da Silva, daughter of a king and of a princess of Guinea Bissau... Read more., should not be omitted in that list, for he had been one of the first korafoláluA kora player is called korafolá (who is able to make the kora talk) - korafolálu, plural. to record that song.
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Notes
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(1) Also called Aïd El Kabir, the Tobaski is the Muslim feast celebrating the end of Ramadan. [back to text]
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Famous performers of “Jula Jekere» :
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Amadu Bansang Jobarteh était un korafolá fort célèbre en Gambie, issu de cette grande famille de griots innovateurs que sont les Diabaté de Gambie et du Mali... Lire la suite., Jula Jekere
[back] 
Alhaji Bai Konté fut un korafolá très célèbre en Gambie. Son héritage est immense car il fut l'initiateur d'un nouveau style de jeu à la kora, en Gambie, le style yeyengo... Lire la suite.