How to Play Csus2 Chord on Guitar
In today's lesson, we'll go over 5 distinct ways to play the C suspended second chord, or Csus2 for short.
We'll discover common positions, voicings, and recommend finger placements, each with its chord diagram. Later in this article, we'll also discuss chord theory, how it gets its name, and how to use it.
Csus2 Guitar Chord In Open Position
To play Csus2 in an open position, place your:
- Index finger on the second string, first fret
- Ring finger on the first string, third fret
- Play strings 1 -4 by strumming from the fourth (D) string down
This voicing is actually an inversion where the root note is not the bass note. When the root note of a chord (in this case, the C note) is the lowest sounding note, it is in the "root position."
Anything other than that would be an inversion and is written as a slash chord. E.g. Csus2/D meaning, play the Csus2 but have the D note as the bass note.
You can also play the Csus2 in an open position with the voicing below:
Csus2 Guitar Chord (Moveable)
This next voicing is not in an open position nor is it a bar chord but rather is called a moveable chord. This voicing is a bit more rare, and I have only seen it played as an arpeggio as part of the solo in the song Welcome Home Sanitarium By Metallica and I Remember You By Skid Row.
To play, place your:
- Index finger on the 6th string, 8th fret
- Middle finger on the 5th string, 10th fret
- Pinky finger on the 4th string, 12th fret
Play Csus2 As A Barre Chord
Csus2 Guitar chord Barre #1:
This is the most common way to play the Csus2 guitar chord. Place your:
- Index finger on fifth string, third fret
- Ring finger on fourth string, fifth fret
- Pinky finger on third string, fifth fret
- Then, as you squeeze in, use your first finger to bar across all the strings from 1 - 5
Csus2 Guitar Chord Barre #2:
The last voicing we'll discuss is played as follows. Place your:
- First finger on the 4th string, 10th fret
- 3rd finger on 2nd string, 12th fret
- 4th finger on 2nd string, 13th fret
- Barre using your index finger across strings 1-4
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C Suspended Second Chord Theory
Now, let’s break down the theory of the Csus2 chord so you can better understand how to use it.
The C suspended second chord is built from the C major scale: C D E F G A B
To understand the chord formula, you need to understand "scale degrees," which is simply numbering the notes of a scale starting with the root note.
Often, music teachers reference piano note names due to the simplicity of the layout of a piano for scales, but I think the illustration below will do:
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
C D E F G A B
The Csus2 is Neither A Major Nor A Minor Chord
In music theory, the 3rd scale degree determines if a chord is major or minor, and because the 3rd scale degree is not part of this chord's formula, it's simply not a major nor minor chord.
For a C suspended second chord, we use the 1 2 5 notes of the scale, which are notes C D G. You must have these notes (no more, no less) to make a Csus2 chord. The order doesn't matter D C G, G D C etc, and the notes can repeat (see chord diagrams).
Side note: I don't want to get too deep into the theory, but sometimes you'll hear the 2 referred to as a major second in reference to the intervals. This is getting a little too deep into music theory and would require a whole other article, so we'll skip this for now.
How To Use A Suspended Second Chord
As already mentioned, a suspended second chord is neither major nor minor - it's almost like it's "SUSPENDED" and doesn't know where to go.
It's used to get a bit more mileage out of the chord before there is movement. This means that you can bounce around on the chord before you move to another chord. For example, you can play a Cm to Csus2 or C major to Csus2 to keep the listener entertained a little longer before you move to another chord in the key.
You can also use these guitar chords for voice leading to help the music flow a bit more naturally. For example, you played a chord progression using Csus2 - A major. This would flow well because Bsus2 uses notes B C# F# and A major uses A C# E. Now, both chords share at least one note, and when this happens, we say they have a common tone or common tones if it’s multiple.
Using the Bsus2 Chord in Chord Progressions:
If you are playing in the key of C minor, go back and forth between Cm and Csus2 a few times, then play a G major. (That will sound sick). If you are playing in the key of C major, go back and forth between the C major chord and Csus2 a few times, then play a Dm.
It's super easy and sounds great!
Now you know a few ways to play the Csus2 chord and understand some Csus2 chord theory!
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