If I Should Lose You relies heavily on the movement between a major key and its relative minor. By understanding how these two key centers relate and connect, you’ll begin to hear and understand how the tune is put together, allowing you to solo in a more coherent way.

The tune begins in the relative minor, making it essential to understand how harmony functions in a minor key. This includes how chords are built, how dominant chords behave, and how minor ii–V progressions operate within the form.

This progression is packed with ii Vs, and developing strong language over these sections is key. By studying the Sonny Rollins lines and exercises we lay out for you, you’ll acquire a vocabulary that you can build on as you grow.

In this lesson, we specifically highlight a ii–V–I line from Mulgrew Miller on If I Should Lose You, showing how blues language and chromatic movement can be used to create strong, connected lines through the progression.