Bérénice Boukaré is a PhD candidate in the Department of Anthropology at the UvA, where she is part of the NWO-funded consortium Re/presenting Europe: Popular Representation of Diversity and Belonging. 

In her master’s thesis, she examined the trajectories of Congolese musicians through an ethnography of a musical association and orchestra based in Vitry-sur-Seine, in the periphery of Paris. Her work demonstrates how different levels of belonging overlap and intertwine in musicians’ diasporic experiences, and how songwriting and music-making serve as means of expressing these multiple identifications.

Bringing together her interests in music and migration, her PhD research explores musicking practices through sensory ethnography between Port of Spain (Trinidad and Tobago) and London (England), focusing on musical performances and bodily practices within carnival groups. She is particularly interested in how these artistic practices create spaces of conviviality and community, and in how artists and performers weave together heritage, tradition, and political activism within increasingly commercialised carnival scenes.

Beyond her research, Bérénice enjoys singing Brazilian popular music and exploring movement and musicality through forró and samba dance.

Research methods

• Ethnographic research methods
• Sensory ethnography

BA

• Doing Anthropology  (2024-2025; 2025-2026)
• Anthropological Research Methods (2025-2026)