Esus4 E suspended fourth chord
- Notes
- E A B
- Formula
- 1 4 5
- Semitones
- 0 5 7 above the root
- Other symbols
- Esus
E to A is a perfect fourth (5 semitones), A to B is a major second (2 semitones). The third is replaced by the fourth (A), which wants to fall to the third. With A in the bass the same three keys read as Asus2.
Esus4 on the piano
Root position from E4: E4, A4, B4. Middle C is C4.
Esus4 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 E as its lowest note.
0 2 2 2 0 0 (low E to high e)
Sounds E2 B2 E3 A3 B3 E4
x 7 9 9 10 7 (low E to high e)
Sounds E3 B3 E4 A4 B4
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 fourth chords on other roots.
Inversions of Esus4
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 | E A B | Esus4 | |
| 1st inversion | A B E | Asus2 (also read as Esus4/A) | |
| 2nd inversion | B E A | B7sus4 (also read as Esus4/B) |
Where Esus4 fits
A sus chord has no third, so it is neither major nor minor and has no fixed place in a key. Esus4 usually resolves to E or Em: the fourth, A, falls a half or whole step to the third. Its most common job is Vsus4 in A major, delaying the V chord: Esus4 → E → A.