Esus4 chord

Tense and expectant. The fourth replaces the third and strains to fall back to it — the classic delayed resolution.

E suspended 4th · 2 voicings

Notes in Esus4

E
root
A
4th
B
5th

How to Play Esus4

Esus4 chord, Open position

Open position

0 2 2 2 0 0

Esus4 chord, Barre, Asus4 shape7

Barre, Asus4 shape

x 7 9 9 10 7

Numbers under each diagram are frets, string 6 (thickest) to string 1. x means don't play that string; 0 means play it open.

How Esus4 Relates to Other Chords

Esus4 contains exactly the same notes as Asus2 — the two are the same chord voiced from a different root, so one shape covers both.

It is built on E with the third replaced, which is why it wants to resolve back to it.

Playing tips for Esus4

Esus4 has an open-position shape, which means some strings ring open and it is playable without barring. Press just behind the fret rather than on top of it, keep your fingertips arched so they do not deaden neighbouring strings, and strum only the strings the diagram marks as played.

If a string buzzes or sounds dead, the usual causes are a fingertip leaning against it, not quite enough pressure, or a finger too far behind the fret. Play each string one at a time to find which one is failing before adjusting the whole shape — and make sure your guitar is in tune first, since an out-of-tune string will make a correct shape sound wrong. Use our free online tuner to check.

Tune first

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