He studied at the Escuela de Música Creativa in Madrid (1984-87), where he later taught Harmony and Composition (1992-96). He studied guitar with guitarist, arranger and prestigious session musician Fredi Marugán (1986-89) and with guitarist and contemporary composers Joe Morris and Jon Damian (Boston, Ma., 1989-91). In 1991 he obtained a Diploma in Jazz Composition at the Berklee College of Music in Boston, Ma.

He attended seminars under the direction of such masters as Steve Brown, Walter Bishop Jr., Jack Walrath, Dave Schnitter, Billy Hart, and Bill Dobbins in Seville and Alcal´, Spain, in 1985. He also attended clinics with guitar legend Joe Pass in Vitoria, Spain, in 1986, and with saxophonist Jorge Pardo in Madrid in 1987. He has worked as a guitar teacher at the Escuela de Nuevas Músicas in Madrid, and as a lecturer in several universities such as Carlos III in Madrid or Middlebury College (Vermont), having taught a Summer jazz course at the Universidad de los Andes in Bogotá, Colombia, in 2005.

He toured several countries in Europe for a month with Colombian salsa group El son del pueblo in 1983. He has played with musicians such as Spanish folklorist Cayetano Morales, in 1985. He has been a member and musical director of the groups Octubre and Via Libre (Madrid,1986-89), The Lincoln Brigade (Boston, Ma., 1989-1991, all original compositions), duos with Uruguayan pianist Andrés Bedó (1992-1993) and Argentinian guitarist Claudio Herchhoren (1993-1994). From 1994 he has led his own goup, the Juan Camacho Quintet, with which he has performed in several festivals and cities such as Bogotá, San Sebastián de los Reyes (Madrid), Lugo, Salamanca, Úbeda, Siria, Lebanon, Luxembourg, etc.

He published his first CD Tatá (Several Records) with all original compositions. It was considered one of the best five CD's published in Spain in 1995 by the prestigious magazine Todas las novedades del mes, in its end of the year summary (Año 3, nº 30). Also The tune "Tatá", which gives name to the CD, was featured on the double compilation called Jazz y otras músicas de Madrid, produced by the Association of Jazz Musicians of Madrid Músicos Asociados (1999). His second CD appeared in 2000, on Satchmo Records. Called La balada de la Brigada Lincoln: Canciones de combate y otros himnos ("The Ballad of the Lincoln Brigade: Combat Songs and Other Hymns"), it featured ten compositions by the Colombian guitarist. 2005 saw the issue of Ternario. La poética de la resistencia ("Ternary: The Poetics of Resistance"), a collection of seven new originals again on Satchmo Records. In February 2009 he published La estrategia del tiempo ("The Strategy of Time"), ten new original compositions. His quintet performed live at the 29th Festival Jazz is Spring at Club de Música y Jazz San Juan Evangelista (Madrid) in 2011.

Having the band turned into a quartet (guitar, piano and keyboards, acoustic and electric bass, drums), Juan Camacho has just published his fifth album, Artesanía popular ("Popular Craftsmanship"), featuring saxophonist Alex Cid in three of the eight new original compositions.