Music education didactics research in France and Switzerland draws on diverse theoretical and methodological approaches (Author 3 et al., 2023). These findings influence teacher education curricula (Joliat & Author 3, 2021), leading to differences in music education methods and traditions between the two countries. In turn, these differences shape classroom practices (Author 3 & Rezzi, 2021; Chatelain et al., 2022; Estienne, 2024). This paper examines how music listening is taught in three teacher education institutions: one in France and two in Switzerland. How are teachers trained to teach music listening in schools?The theoretical framework examines musical and didactic training for music education in France and Switzerland (Maizières, 2011; Jaccard, 2010). Music listening instruction in both countries is then reviewed (Author 3, 2006; Maizières, 2014; Mili, 2011; Afsin, 2009), and the internal didactic transposition (IDT) model is outlined (Chevallard, 1985; Author 3, 2014) via five key indicators: decontextualization, depersonalization, recontextualization, repersonalization, evaluation. The aim is to describe how IDT occurs in music listening learning in each institution. We aim to explore links between teacher education content and processes, and broader national/regional trends in music education research and methodology.A comparative approach based on analysis of text types is used (Stumpf et al., 2016, p. 40). National/state education policies and institutional competency frameworks determining course syllabuses are collected and compared. Syllabuses from the three institutions concerning music listening are coded using the IDT framework (Paillé & Mucchielli, 2021). Each indicator is qualitatively analyzed to describe how IDT is effected in the syllabuses.Initial results show how the French framework emphasizes mastery of disciplinary knowledge and didactics, while the Swiss frameworks focus on developing critical professionals with knowledge and culture. At Aix-Marseille University, processes of decontextualization and recontextualization dominate. In the Swiss institutions, decontextualization and repersonalization are prevalent. Despite differing methods, all three institutions aim to transform musical knowledge into teachable content.Institutional differences may stem from greater academic freedom granted to university-based teacher educators compared to those in “hautes écoles pédagogiques”. They may also reflect Switzerland’s tradition of active pedagogies (ex. Dalcroze eurhythmics), which emphasize sensory and bodily experiences through sound games (Clerc-Georgy, 2023), in contrast to the more cognitive and verbal approach in the French institution, focused on sound parameter analysis, emotional expression, and specific vocabulary usage. Results from this study can enlarge horizons and aid teacher educators in delivering a nuanced discourse concerning didactic methods and processes.