The purpose of this paper is to discuss the implications for the field of music education from two research projects that established a dialogue between music education and public policy for adolescents: one focused on primary social protection and the other on socio-educational measures. Both studies were conducted in the city of Sao Paulo at institutions responsible for implementing these policies, respectively, the Centers for Children and Adolescents and the CASA Foundation. The investigations are qualitative multiple case studies, one focusing on the reason why the music education practices for adolescents lie within a context of primary social protection and the other focusing on the construction, by music educators, of their musical and pedagogical activities within a scenario of socio-educational measures for adolescents in conflict with the law. The discussion proposed in this article addresses the presence of music education in two scenarios that share common aspects governed by public policies that contextualize the music education practices used in these scenarios. Bringing these two studies together in the same text also stems from the interest in placing side by side the music practices involved in two unfortunately related environments: one that aims to prevent adolescent girls and boys who are victims of social injustice in Brazil from reaching the extreme situation of being considered criminal offenders, the condition of the second scenario, and then having their freedom restricted. The implication of the dialogue between music education and public policy is the relevance of situating music education practices within a macropolitical context aiming at greater awareness of the role of the music practices in these scenarios, as well as in the performance of music educators.