A suspended fourth
How to play Asus4 — Suspended fourth
Asus4 (Suspended fourth)A · D · E
Guitar samples: Acoustic guitar — University of Iowa (via tonejs-instruments, CC-BY 3.0)
A suspended fourth — notes and structure
The Asus4 chord replaces the third with the fourth for an open, unresolved sound that usually pulls back to the plain major chord.
The Asus4 suspended fourth consists of the notes A, D, E. Its interval structure is R–4–5 — the root, then each chord tone stacked above it. This is the same chord you see in the interactive finder above, drawn on the guitar fretboard with the root circled and every chord tone labelled.
Asus4 stacks a perfect fourth (D) and a perfect fifth (E) above the root A.
The finder shows 2 ways to play Asus4 — an open-position shape reaching up to the 7th fret. 1 of them use a barre.
What key is Asus4 in?
Every note of Asus4 belongs to the scales below, so the chord sounds at home in each of these keys — the roman numeral is the degree it sits on.
- C major — the VI chord
- G major — the II chord
- F major — the III chord
- D major — the V chord
Chords that go with Asus4
In C major, the chords built on the first, fourth and fifth degrees carry most songs — put Asus4 next to these:
Frequently asked questions
- What notes are in the A suspended fourth chord?
- The Asus4 chord contains the notes A, D, E. It replaces the third with the fourth for an open, unresolved sound that usually pulls back to the plain major chord.
- How many ways can you play Asus4 on guitar?
- 2 voicings are shown on this page — from open position up the neck — each with its own fingering diagram and audio.
- Is Asus4 a hard chord to play?
- Some voicings use a barre, which takes practice, but the chord is very playable once that shape is comfortable.
- What key does Asus4 belong to?
- Asus4 fits C major (where it is the VI chord), G major (where it is the II chord), F major (where it is the III chord) — every note of the chord is in those scales.