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E♭ sus2 chord (E♭sus2)

E♭ sus2 is a 3-note sus2 chord: E♭ – F – B♭. It sounds open and ambiguous: neither major nor minor. Here it is on guitar, piano and ukulele, with fingering and audio. Also called D♯ sus2 (D♯sus2).

  • NotesE♭ – F – B♭
  • Formula1 – 2 – 5
  • SymbolE♭sus2 · E♭2
  • EnharmonicD♯ sus2 (D♯sus2)

E♭ sus2 on guitar

  • 6×13411E♭B♭E♭FB♭
    Barre at fret 6 (A shape)

How to place your fingers (barre at fret 6)

  1. Barre fret 6 with your index finger, from the 5th to the 1st string.
  2. Finger 3 (ring) on fret 8 of the 4th string (D).
  3. Finger 4 (pinky) on fret 8 of the 3rd string (G).
  4. Do not play the 6th string: strum from the 5th.

The numbers inside the dots are the fingers of your left hand: 1 index, 2 middle, 3 ring and 4 pinky. The colored dots mark the root (E♭).

E♭ sus2 on piano

FE♭B♭

In root position, play E♭ – F – B♭ from bottom to top with fingers 1, 3 and 5 of your right hand (thumb, middle and pinky). With your left hand you usually play just the root (E♭) or the root and the fifth.

Inversions

  • First inversion: F – B♭ – E♭
  • Second inversion: B♭ – E♭ – F

E♭ sus2 on ukulele

  • B♭E♭FB♭
    From fret 1
  • 3B♭FB♭E♭
    From fret 3

Standard tuning G – C – E – A (the G string is the high one). Is your ukulele in tune? Use the ukulele tuner.

Notes and intervals of E♭ sus2

  • E♭1 · root
  • F2 · major second
  • B♭5 · perfect fifth

It's used to open up the sound of a major or minor chord, in pop and rock strumming and in intros with open strings.

Progressions with E♭sus2

Suspend and resolve: Isus2 – I

E♭sus2 usually resolves to E♭: you change just one note and the chord “settles”.

Frequently asked questions

What notes are in the E♭ suspended 2 chord?

E♭ suspended 2 (E♭sus2) has 3 notes: E♭ (root), F (major second), B♭ (perfect fifth).

How do you play E♭ suspended 2 on guitar?

The most common shape uses a barre at fret 6: x 6 8 8 6 6 (from the 6th to the 1st string). Barre fret 6 with your index finger, from the 5th to the 1st string. Place finger 3 (ring) at fret 8 on the 4th string (D). Place finger 4 (pinky) at fret 8 on the 3rd string (G). Do not play the 6th string: strum from the 5th.

Is E♭sus2 the same as D♯sus2?

Yes: E♭ suspended 2nd and D♯ suspended 2nd sound the same and are played the same way (they are enharmonic). The spelling depends on the key of the song; you'll see both names in sheet music and songbooks.

What is the chord symbol for E♭ suspended 2?

It is written E♭sus2; you may also see E♭2. Chord symbols use letter names for notes: C, D, E, F, G, A, and B.

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