Introduction: Instrumental training (IT) is a multisensory motor experience, which requires many skills, including reading a complex symbolic system and translating into sequential, bimanual motor activity dependent on multisensory feedback; developing fine motor and cognitive abilities in typical children.

Methods: Fourteen children with hemiplegic cerebral palsy (HCP) were invited to participate in a musical program with 60-minute musical literacy group lesson and 60-minute individual piano lesson once a week for 40 weeks. Each child had a keyboard of 30-minute daily training home. Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC-IV) and Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) were used pre and post intervention. Wilcoxon test and Spearman coefficient were used on statistical analysis, considering p<0.05.

Results: Six males were the ones that concluded study acquiring musical literacy. The others 8 gave up the program.  Mean age was 10.3±1.5 years-old (7.6 to 12.2). Better was seen on picture concepts, coding, comprehension, symbol search, picture completion, information, arithmetic, word reasoning, perceptual reasoning, processing speed and full scale on WISC IV (Table 1). It was not observed changes on CBCL.

Conclusion/Discussion: A longitudinal study of the effects of music training on cognition in HCP showed improvement in verbal comprehension, perceptual reasoning and processing speed. We can’t demonstrate better participation using CBCL. IT is a pleased activity, of low cost and effective. The largest difficulties found were to stimulate more children in study participation, because of the families’ low income/education and the understanding of the IT impact on child’s functionality and social participation.