This work aims to investigate the historical relationships between music education and secondary education at the court of Rio de Janeiro, with the central element the constant presence of music between classes at Imperial College of Pedro II, in the nineteenth century. To this end, we seek to analyze the symbolic and political importance of music in the formation of a cultured and civilized image of the Empire of Brazil, especially the good society in the Court of Rio de Janeiro, the trajectory of the first music teachers of the college and the characteristics and place that music lessons were getting between the year of its inauguration in 1838 and 1855, when a reform of its Regulations sharply redefines the space of its importance. The documentary corpus built for the work consists, in addition to the published memoirs about the college, periodicals and official documents, such as news and press articles, bills of sale, Timesheet and number of lessons, teachers Maps Fouls Book and settlement of employees of the college. The methodology used is the qualitative analysis of documents referenced by the line of research of Cultural History, and focused specifically on the history of school subjects and the history of the teaching profession.