Asus2 A suspended second chord
- Notes
- A B E
- Formula
- 1 2 5
- Semitones
- 0 2 7 above the root
A to B is a major second (2 semitones), B to E is a perfect fourth (5 semitones). The third is replaced by the second (B), so the chord is neither major nor minor. The same three keys with E in the bass read as Esus4.
Asus2 on the piano
Root position from A4: A4, B4, E5. Middle C is C4.
Asus2 on the guitar
Standard tuning (E A D G B E). Strings run low E on the left to high e on the right, frets downwards; × is a muted string, ○ an open string, and each dot shows the note it sounds, with the root in blue-green. Every shape below has A as its lowest note.
x 0 2 2 0 0 (low E to high e)
Sounds A2 E3 A3 B3 E4
The barre shapes are movable: an E-shape chord's root is the note under your first finger on the low E string, an A-shape chord's root is the note on the A string. Slide the same grip up or down to play suspended second chords on other roots.
Inversions of Asus2
An inversion puts a note other than the root in the bass. The name is what semicord's chord finder calls those notes played bottom to top; a slash name like C/E means a C chord with E in the bass.
| Position | Notes, bass first | Named | Listen |
|---|---|---|---|
| Root position | A B E | Asus2 | |
| 1st inversion | B E A | B7sus4 (also read as Asus2/B) | |
| 2nd inversion | E A B | Esus4 (also read as Asus2/E) |
Where Asus2 fits
A sus chord has no third, so it is neither major nor minor and has no fixed place in a key. In Asus2 the second, B, usually rises to the major or minor third or falls back to the root A; it is also often left unresolved as a colour, especially on guitar.