Chord Voicing- sus Chords

The Suspended Chord (sus, sus4, augmented 3rd, raised 3rd)

• The suspended chord is one in which the 3rd of the chord is raised one half step. This changes the triad from Root-3rd-5th to Root-4th-5th. This chord (A form) can be written as "Asus" or "Asus4". It can also be referred to as the augmented 3rd or the raised 3rd. The suspended tone (4th) is referred to as a non-harmonic tone since it has a disonant sound that demands resolution. You may find that you will not want to "hang" on this chord too long or end a song with it because it sounds funny (I say this but many songs, including my own, have ended on a disonant chord to keep the listener waiting for the resolution that never comes). Experiment with these chords and see for yourself.
• Click here to look at different sus4 chords

sus2 Chords

• This chord is where the 3rd is lowered to a 2nd or dropped down one whole step. This changes the chord from Root-3rd-5th to Root-2nd-5th. This is also a non-harmonic tone that demands resolution.
• A D chord Has the following characteristics:
  • Root(D)-3rd(F#)-5th(A)
• A Dsus2 chord looks like:
  • Root(D)-2nd(E)-5th(A)
If you remove your finger from the high E string when playing a D chord, you end up with a Dsus2.

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