Weekly Newsletter #33

March 24, 2022

Most players have come across chords symbols such as Csus2 or D7sus4. However not everyone truly knows what these symbols mean, even if they can play the chord itself. 

Understanding suspended chords is one important step toward having a full breadth of knowledge as it pertains to music theory and the guitar. Simply knowing how to play chords is a great first step, but to really be able to compose, improvise and adapt to varying musical scenarios, a deeper understanding must be attained. 

What Are Suspended Chords? 

The term “suspended” comes from classical theory and refers to the fact that suspended chords have no third. Instead, they are triad chords that use either a perfect fourth or major second in place of the major or minor third. 

The second or fourth “suspends” the resolution to the third of the chord. Meaning that suspended chords are neither major nor minor because the third is what would signify that major/minor tonality. In place of the third of the chord the second or fourth creates a more open and ambiguous tonality. 

Often times, suspended chords delay a type of resolution to the major or minor chord by replacing that third with a suspended second or fourth before moving that suspended note to the third. 

For example it is very common to play a Csus2 followed by a C major triad. The movement of the second (within the Csus2) to the third (within the C major chord) creates a tonal shift from this ambiguous suspended sound to a concrete and firm major chord. In effect you are “suspending” the C major momentarily with a Csus2 before finally getting there. 

How Many Suspended Chords Are There? 

Sus2 and Sus4 chords are not the only suspended chords that exist; in fact there are many variations of suspended chords. However these two are the most common, along with one more, the “7sus4”. 

There are other more advanced versions of suspended chords such as “slash chords”. We won’t be diving into these today since they merit an entire newsletter of their own, but chords such as C/D are essentially “double suspended” chords. Meaning that they would be a dominant 7 chord with both the second and fourth added in place of the third of the chord. This would be spelled out as: D-E-G-C (1-2-4-b7). 

How Are Suspended Chords Spelled & How Do You Use Them? 

Let’s take the key of C for the sake of simplicity. Hopefully you’re familiar with major and minor chord harmony. If not, please read Newsletter #3 before moving on. 

Sus2 Chords 

Ok, so a C chord contains the notes C-E-G as the 1-3-5 of the C major scale (C-D-E-F-G-A-B). 

Replacing that E (3rd) with the second note of the scale would give you a Csus2. Spelled out as C-D-G (1-2-5). 

Notice how in the notation, the D of the Csus2 chord moves up a whole step to the E? This is the resolution of the suspension and despite not being a V - I type of resolution, it nonetheless creates a resolution of its own. 

Sus4 Chords 

Sus4 chords work the exact same way, except instead of using the second degree of the scale they use the fourth degree. 

Spelled out that would be C-F-G (1-4-5). 

Just as with the sus2 chord, the suspended note, in this case F, resolves to the third. However, there is one substantial difference between these two chords. 

The D in the sus2 chord must move a whole-step upward to the E in order to resolve, while the F in the sus4 chord must only move down a half-step to the E. 

This difference in proximity from the suspended note to the third creates a major difference in the stability of a sus2 chord compared to a sus4 chord. 

The half-step movement of the sus4 to the third mimics a V - I resolution much more closely than the sus2. In fact, if you understand 7th chords than you’ll likely recognize that the F in this case is also the b7 of the dominant chord in the key of C, G7.  The movement of the F to E in the suspended resolution is the exact same movement that occurs when resolving from a G7 to a C chord. 

7sus4 Chords 

Despite there being many more than the suspended chords listed here, this is the third most common, and likely the most useful to create tension and resolution of the three suspended chords. 

A 7sus4 chord is exactly what it sounds like. It is a dominant 7 chord with a sus4 in place of the third. 

Sticking with the key of C, the naturally occurring dominant 7 chord of the key would be G7. Spelled out as G-B-D-F. 

When creating a suspended chord on any note it is vital to think of the notes of your chord as 1-3-5-7 etc. In the case of G7 that would mean the G-B-D-F should be thought of as 1-3-5-b7, not 5-7-2-4. Each suspended chord is built in relation to the root of the chord, not the key. 

So taking the standard G7 we would then replace the third with the fourth, giving us G-C-D-F (1-4-5-b7). 

Just as in the standard sus4 chord, this 7sus4 utilizes the half-step distance between the fourth and third of the chord to “suspend” the actual dominant 7 sound until a later time. 

Commonly, this is done as an approach to the 1 chord of the key. Instead of simply playing G7 to C, you can create longer tension and more anticipation by playing G7sus4 - G7 - C. 

So far we have really only talked about major chords, however minor chords can be the target of a suspended resolution as well. 

In this case the second in the sus2 chord is a half-step below the minor third and creates slightly more of a resolution than the whole-step of the sus4 to minor third. 

Other than that though, suspended chords can function essentially the same whether they move toward a minor or major chord. 

So How Does This Relate To Guitar Playing? 

Well, if you’re a songwriter, the implications of this are profound. You can plug in these sus chords, not only as a means of resolution between chords, but using them allows you to sing melodies that focus around a note other than the 1-3-5 of the chord. 

In fact, suspended chords don’t need to resolve to their major or minor partners at all. It’s common to simply use a suspended chord as a stand-alone chord, without moving the suspended note to the third whatsoever. 

For instrumentalists and players who want to use these chords in songs they already play, it’s actually really simple. 

During any major or minor chord you play, you should identify where the third is in that specific shape. On either side of that note will be the second or fourth of the chord. It becomes quite easy to “dance” between the sus2, sus4 and the major or minor version of the chord. 

This movement within the chord can be very effective in creating small melodic changes to a chord that is being played for longer durations. If you’re playing a song where there is a major, minor or dominant 7 chord for two measures or more, try to switch back and forth between the original chord and one of the three suspended versions (saving the 7sus4 for dominant chords only). 

There is much more that can be said of suspended chords, and I encourage any of you to send me an email with questions you might have regarding this or any other topics. 

For now, experiment with these and see if you can’t begin to plug them in to your playing today! 

Allow your ear to guide you. 

-Max Rich