Also written A♭sus4, A♭sus or A♭ Suspended
A♭ suspended 4th contains A♭, D♭, and E♭. The 4th-fret shape is a stretch, but the inversion at the 11th fret uses a barre for a warmer voicing.
The same three notes, with a different one in the bass.
A♭ suspended 4th is built from the formula 1, 4, 5 — the root A♭, the perfect fourth D♭, and the perfect fifth E♭. The fourth replaces the third, which removes the major or minor quality and leaves an open, unresolved sound. Compare it with A♭ major, where the third is C.
A♭ suspended 4th works as a suspended colour in A♭ major progressions like A♭–D♭–E♭–A♭, the I–IV–V–I, where it delays the resolution of A♭ major. It also fits rock, pop, and gospel when a chord needs to hover before landing.
The 4th-fret shape puts A♭ in the bass for a rooted, stable sound. The A♭sus4/D♯ inversion places E♭ in the bass, which softens the chord and works well when the bass line is descending toward D♭.
A♭ suspended 4th is played at the 4th fret as 4 6 6 6: index finger on the E string at fret 4, middle finger on the A string at fret 6, ring finger on the D string at fret 6 and pinky finger on the G string at fret 6.
Tip — The three-fret stretch from the index on the 4th string to the pinky on the 1st string demands a wide hand span.
| String | Fret | Finger | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4 (E) | 4 | 1 | A♭ (1) |
| 3 (A) | 6 | 2 | E♭ (5) |
| 2 (D) | 6 | 3 | A♭ (1) |
| 1 (G) | 6 | 4 | D♭ (4) |
A♭ suspended 4th is played at the 11th fret as 11 11 11 13: barre your index finger across fret 11 and pinky finger on the G string at fret 13.
| String | Fret | Finger | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4 (E) | 11 | 1 (barre) | E♭ (5) |
| 3 (A) | 11 | 1 (barre) | A♭ (1) |
| 2 (D) | 11 | 1 (barre) | D♭ (4) |
| 1 (G) | 13 | 4 | A♭ (1) |
A♭ suspended 4th is written as A♭sus or A♭sus4. The ASCII spelling is Ab, so you may see Absus or Absus4. It is also spelled G♯ in enharmonic notation for the same sounding root.
A♭ suspended 4th replaces the third with the fourth, D♭. A♭ suspended 2nd replaces the third with the second, B♭, creating an even more open sound.
Yes, A♭ suspended 4th can resolve to A♭ minor by moving the fourth down a half step to the minor third, C♭. This resolution is common in classical and folk music.