Also written B♭sus4, B♭sus or B♭ Suspended
B♭ suspended 4th contains B♭, E♭, and F. The 6th-fret shape is a stretch, but the inversion at the 1st fret uses a barre for a warmer voicing.
The same three notes, with a different one in the bass.
B♭ suspended 4th is built from the formula 1, 4, 5 — the root B♭, the perfect fourth E♭, and the perfect fifth F. The fourth replaces the third, which removes the major or minor quality and leaves an open, unresolved sound. Compare it with B♭ major, where the third is D.
B♭ suspended 4th works as a suspended colour in B♭ major progressions like B♭–E♭–F–B♭, the I–IV–V–I, where it delays the resolution of B♭ major. It also fits rock, pop, and gospel when a chord needs to hover before landing.
The 6th-fret shape puts B♭ in the bass for a rooted, stable sound. The B♭sus4/F inversion places F in the bass, which softens the chord and works well when the bass line is descending toward E♭.
B♭ suspended 4th is played at the 6th fret as 6 8 8 8: index finger on the E string at fret 6, middle finger on the A string at fret 8, ring finger on the D string at fret 8 and pinky finger on the G string at fret 8.
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) | 6 | 1 | B♭ (1) |
| 3 (A) | 8 | 2 | F (5) |
| 2 (D) | 8 | 3 | B♭ (1) |
| 1 (G) | 8 | 4 | E♭ (4) |
B♭ suspended 4th is played at the 1st fret as 1 1 1 3: barre your index finger across fret 1 and pinky finger on the G string at fret 3.
| String | Fret | Finger | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4 (E) | 1 | 1 (barre) | F (5) |
| 3 (A) | 1 | 1 (barre) | B♭ (1) |
| 2 (D) | 1 | 1 (barre) | E♭ (4) |
| 1 (G) | 3 | 4 | B♭ (1) |
B♭ suspended 4th is played at the 13th fret as 13 13 13 15: barre your index finger across fret 13 and pinky finger on the G string at fret 15.
| String | Fret | Finger | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4 (E) | 13 | 1 (barre) | F (5) |
| 3 (A) | 13 | 1 (barre) | B♭ (1) |
| 2 (D) | 13 | 1 (barre) | E♭ (4) |
| 1 (G) | 15 | 4 | B♭ (1) |
B♭ suspended 4th is written as B♭sus or B♭sus4. The ASCII spelling is Bb, so you may see Bbsus or Bbsus4. It is also spelled A♯ in enharmonic notation for the same sounding root.
B♭ suspended 4th replaces the third with the fourth, E♭. B♭ suspended 2nd replaces the third with the second, C, creating an even more open sound.
Yes, B♭ suspended 4th can resolve to B♭ minor by moving the fourth down a half step to the minor third, D♭. This resolution is common in classical and folk music.