Sus2, sus4 and add9: making a chord move

The movement: sus2 and sus4

Sus chords are almost never used on their own: they make a major chord move. On D, add a finger, then take it away: Dsus4, D, Dsus2, D. Same idea on A with Asus4 and Asus2.

“Sus” is short for suspended: the third, the note that tells you whether a chord is major or minor, is replaced by the fourth (sus4) or the second (sus2). Your ear waits for the return to the major chord. The sus2 chords and sus4 chords pages go into how they’re built.

How to go about it

1. Fret D and don’t let go. Only the note on the high E moves: keep your D fingers and add your pinky on the 3^rd fret for Dsus4, lift your middle finger for Dsus2. (The diagram shows the other common Dsus4 fingering, index, middle and ring: more comfortable when the chord lasts.)
2. On A, same idea on the B string: keep A and add your pinky on the 3^rd fret for Asus4 (or your ring finger, as in the diagram), leave the string open for Asus2.
3. Change on a weak beat. The movement sounds best on the “and” of 2 or on 4, while your strumming hand keeps going without stopping.

add9: adding without taking away

An add9 chord keeps its third and adds the ninth (the same note as the second, an octave higher). It doesn’t hang in suspense like a sus2: it’s a major chord, just brighter. The two most used on guitar:

• Cadd9: C’s bass with a new fingering: middle finger on the A string at the 3rd fret, index on the D string at the 2nd fret, ring finger on the B string at the 3rd fret (D) and pinky on the high E string at the 3rd fret (G). The open C chord starts to shimmer.
• Gadd9: G, with a finger on the G string at the 2nd fret (A).

e|-0-3-3-3-|
B|-1-3-0-0-|
G|-0-0-0-2-|
D|-2-2-0-0-|
A|-3-3-2-2-|
E|-----3-3-|

Cadd9 and G (in the shape with the ring finger and pinky at the 3rd fret on the B and high E strings) share those two fingers: going from one to the other only moves the index and middle fingers. That’s why you hear them together so often in acoustic pop.

Your turn

Take a progression you know, for example G, D, A, D, and add a Dsus4 before each D and an Asus4 before each A. Listen to how much more the progression “breathes.”

You’ve got it when…

• You make a D chord move with Dsus4 and Dsus2 in rhythm
• You do the same on A with Asus4 and Asus2
• You’ve slipped sus chords into a progression you know, without breaking the rhythm
• You play Cadd9 and Gadd9, and hear the difference from C and G