Suspended chord

The third is missing

In every major or minor triad the third decides the mode: with E it sounds C major, with E♭ it sounds C minor. If you replace it by the fourth (F) or the second (D), a chord arises that is neither. That is the suspended chord. In the chord symbol it is Csus4 or Csus2, where “sus” stands for “suspended”, so “hung up”.

In the glossary: Suspension · Triad · Dominant

From the suspension to a chord of its own

Historically the chord grew out of the suspension. In classical writing the third of a chord is temporarily replaced by the fourth, which lies on a strong beat and then resolves by step downwards into the third. This 4–3 suspension is especially frequent on the dominant before the close: the dominant first appears without its third and gets the leading tone only with the resolution. That delays the close and strengthens it.

In the music of the 20th century, in jazz and in popular music the chord has become independent. It no longer has to be resolved but can stay as a colour. It sounds open, floating and slightly tense. Because the third is missing it fits into different contexts and suits sustained harmonic textures and transitions.

Distinctions

• Power chord: it too lacks the third, but no substitute note takes its place. It consists only of root and fifth.
• Chord with an added second (add2): the third stays, the second is merely added. Csus2, by contrast, has no E.
• Six-four chord: there too a fourth lies above the bass, but as the inversion of a triad. In the sus4 chord the root lies in the bass.