ArpeggiosEN

Arpeggio quality

sus2

The suspended second chord replaces the third with the second, leaving a root, a major second and a perfect fifth. With no third, it is neither major nor minor — it simply hangs, open and ambiguous. That neutrality is its strength: it works as a passing colour, a folk or ambient texture, and a way to avoid committing a harmony. The second sits a whole step above the root and rubs gently against it, so the chord sounds modern rather than tense. On the neck the shape is symmetrical and easy to move. Listen for the missing third: its absence is the sound.

Formula
1 2 5
Notes
C♯ D♯ G♯
Family
Sus

Notation in C♯

representative key
44125

Fretboard — frets 0–12

C♯ sus2 — frets 0 to 12, 18 notes, roots in orange5121255122511255120123456789101112
C♯ sus2 — frets 0 to 12, 18 notes, roots in orange5121255122511255120123456789101112

All 17 keys

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Same family

How to practise this arpeggio

  • Play the second against the root and listen for the whole-step rub.
  • Compare it with the major triad and hear the missing third.
  • Move the shape across the neck and use it as a passing chord.
  • Improvise over a sus2 vamp and avoid the third entirely.