A Suspended 4th (Asus4)

1+4+5
ADE
4 4
Download MIDI

Notes in A Suspended 4th

A (root)DE

Inversions

Same notes as A Suspended 4th, with a different chord tone as the lowest note. Useful for smoother movement between chords instead of jumping around the keyboard.

Root position

A in the bass

ADE

1st inversion

D in the bass

DEA

2nd inversion

E in the bass

EAD

Play A, D and E together and you get A Suspended 4th.

The other suspension raises the missing third up to a perfect fourth, which sits a half step above where the third would normally be. That closeness creates real tension, and it's why a sus4 chord so often falls straight back down into the plain major or minor triad on the same root a beat later.

Difficulty: Beginner. Category: Triads. Click any key on the diagram above to hear that single note.