Ebsus2 Eb suspended second chord
- Notes
- Eb F Bb
- Formula
- 1 2 5
- Semitones
- 0 2 7 above the root
- Also written
- D#sus2 (D# E# A#)
Eb to F is a major second (2 semitones), F to Bb is a perfect fourth (5 semitones). The third is replaced by the second (F), so the chord is neither major nor minor. The same three keys with Bb in the bass read as Bbsus4.
Ebsus2 on the piano
Root position from Eb4: Eb4, F4, Bb4. Middle C is C4.
Ebsus2 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 Eb as its lowest note.
x 6 8 8 6 6 (low E to high e)
Sounds Eb3 Bb3 Eb4 F4 Bb4
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.
Ebsus2 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.
3311 (G C E A)
Sounds Bb4 Eb4 F4 Bb4
3566 (G C E A)
Sounds Bb4 F4 Bb4 Eb5
Lowest note F4, so the chord finder reads it as F7sus4.
Inversions of Ebsus2
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 | Eb F Bb | Ebsus2 | |
| 1st inversion | F Bb Eb | F7sus4 (also read as Ebsus2/F) | |
| 2nd inversion | Bb Eb F | Bbsus4 (also read as Ebsus2/Bb) |
Where Ebsus2 fits
A sus chord has no third, so it is neither major nor minor and has no fixed place in a key. In Ebsus2 the second, F, usually rises to the major or minor third or falls back to the root Eb; it is also often left unresolved as a colour, especially on guitar.