The present work tackles the analysis of an original and idiosyncratic project, in which a Ministry of Culture proposes a training program in music research. Inviting musicians/teachers, researchers, and institutions from different backgrounds and territories, this project led to a broad debate on how to approach research to strengthen traditional music practices in Colombia. Through the critical-descriptive analysis of the documentation derived from the process, this study allows one to appreciate the genesis of this policy, as well as different positions of the actors, the epistemological and political struggle behind the recognition of multiculturality, the forms of rationality involved in the research-training relationship, and the importance of coherence in methodological, pedagogical and operational matters, which guarantee the formulation of a research policy that is in keeping with the wealth of local social knowledge, as a field of alternatives for open and plural societies more integrated, respectful of difference, and proud of their diversity.