Csus2 C suspended second chord
- Notes
- C D G
- Formula
- 1 2 5
- Semitones
- 0 2 7 above the root
C to D is a major second (2 semitones), D to G is a perfect fourth (5 semitones). The third is replaced by the second (D), so the chord is neither major nor minor. The same three keys with G in the bass read as Gsus4.
Csus2 on the piano
Root position from C4: C4, D4, G4. Middle C is C4.
Csus2 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 C as its lowest note.
x 3 5 5 3 3 (low E to high e)
Sounds C3 G3 C4 D4 G4
The E-shape and A-shape grips 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.
Csus2 on the ukulele
Standard ukulele tuning is G C E A, drawn with the G string on the left and frets downwards, as ukulele chord charts show it. The G string is tuned higher than the C string (G4 above middle C, a fifth over C4), so the lowest note you hear is usually on the C or E string, not on the G string, and a shape can sound as an inversion even when its root is on the G string. All four strings are strummed, so every string plays a chord tone; the root is in blue-green.
0233 (G C E A)
Sounds G4 D4 G4 C5
Lowest note D4, so the chord finder reads it as D7sus4.
0035 (G C E A)
Sounds G4 C4 G4 D5
Inversions of Csus2
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 | C D G | Csus2 | |
| 1st inversion | D G C | D7sus4 (also read as Csus2/D) | |
| 2nd inversion | G C D | Gsus4 (also read as Csus2/G) |
Where Csus2 fits
A sus chord has no third, so it is neither major nor minor and has no fixed place in a key. In Csus2 the second, D, usually rises to the major or minor third or falls back to the root C; it is also often left unresolved as a colour, especially on guitar.