A♭7sus4 chord
A♭ dominant seventh suspended fourth. The dominant seventh suspended fourth: a fourth in place of the third, with a minor seventh. It sounds open and waits for the third before resolving.
Click a note to hear it
- Notes
- A♭ D♭ E♭ G♭
- Formula
- 1 4 5 ♭7
- Intervals
- P1 P4 P5 m7
- Also written
- A♭7sus
- Enharmonic
- G♯7sus4
Notes in A♭7sus4
A♭7sus4 is spelled A♭ D♭ E♭ G♭: four notes stacked from the root A♭.
| Note | Interval above A♭ | Role | Formula |
|---|---|---|---|
| P1 | root | 1 | |
| P4 | eleventh | 4 | |
| P5 | fifth | 5 | |
| m7 | seventh | ♭7 |
Inversions
Putting a different chord tone in the bass gives each inversion. The chord is the same; the bass note changes how it sounds and what it can lead to.
| Position | Notes, low to high | Symbol | Hear it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Root position | A♭ D♭ E♭ G♭ | A♭7sus4 | |
| First inversion | D♭ E♭ G♭ A♭ | A♭7sus4/D♭ | |
| Second inversion | E♭ G♭ A♭ D♭ | A♭7sus4/E♭ | |
| Third inversion | G♭ A♭ D♭ E♭ | A♭7sus4/G♭ |
On the piano
The root position voicing, with every chord tone lit in its own colour. Click a key to hear it.
On the guitar
A♭7sus4 in standard tuning. The barre shapes below slide anywhere on the neck, so the same fingers give you every root. Strings run from the lowest (left) to the highest (right); X means do not play that string.
E-shape barre at fret 4
What it sounds like
C7sus4 is C, F, G and B♭: the fourth replaces the major third of C7, so the chord loses its tritone and its strongest pull. The fourth sits a perfect fourth above the root and a major second below the fifth, which gives the chord a suspended, open tension. The minor seventh remains, so the chord keeps a dominant colour, but without a third it has no major or minor quality. It sounds expectant, and it resolves most naturally when the fourth falls to the third.
How it is used
The dominant seventh suspended fourth usually appears on the dominant, as V7sus4, in major and minor keys. It is common in rock, pop and jazz, where it is often held before the plain dominant seventh. The usual pattern is V7sus4 to V7 to I, with the fourth falling by a semitone to the third and the dominant then resolving normally. In G, that is G7sus4 to G7 to C, with C falling to B.
How it is built
C7sus4 is a root with a perfect fourth, a perfect fifth and a minor seventh, 0, 5, 7 and 10 semitones above the root. Common symbols are C7sus4, C7sus and C7(sus4). Its inversions put F or G in the bass, as C7sus4/F and C7sus4/G. In the key of C, the dominant suspension is written G7sus4, with G as its root. The fourth and the minor seventh form a perfect fourth, F and B♭.
Which keys contain A♭7sus4
A♭7sus4 is not built from any one major or minor key’s own notes. It appears through borrowing, alteration or chromatic voice leading, which is part of why it sounds coloured.
Scales that fit A♭7sus4
Scales that contain every note of the chord, so they can be played over it:
- C Locrian
- C♯ major
- C♯ natural minor
- C♯ harmonic minor
- C♯ melodic minor
- C♯ Dorian
- C♯ Mixolydian
- D♭ major
- D♭ natural minor
- D♭ harmonic minor
- D♭ melodic minor
- D♭ Dorian
- D♭ Mixolydian
- E♭ natural minor
Other A♭ chords
How to practise it
Play G7sus4, then G7, then C major, moving C down to B in the second chord. Repeat the pattern with D7sus4, D7 and G, where the G falls to F♯. Listen to the single moving note, which resolves the chord's tension at each step. Keep the hand in one position so the moving note is easy to hear.
Further reading
- Suspended Chords: Sus2 and Sus4 ExplainedHarmony · 7 min
- Seventh Chords and How They Resolve in Tonal HarmonyHarmony · 7 min
- Chord Symbols Explained: Major, Minor, Seventh and Slash ChordsHarmony · 8 min
Questions
What notes are in a A♭7sus4 chord?
A♭7sus4 contains A♭, D♭, E♭, G♭. That is the root, eleventh, fifth, seventh of the chord.
How do you spell A♭ dominant seventh suspended fourth?
Stack the intervals P1, P4, P5, m7 above A♭: A♭, D♭, E♭, G♭.
What other symbols mean A♭7sus4?
Lead sheets also write it A♭7sus. They are the same chord.
What is the difference between C7 and C7sus4?
C7 is C, E, G and B♭. C7sus4 replaces E with F, so the chord is C, F, G and B♭. Without the major third, the tritone that drives the dominant is gone. C7sus4 sounds open and waits for the third, so it usually resolves to C7 before it moves on.
How do you resolve a 7sus4 chord?
The fourth falls by a semitone to the third, which turns C7sus4 into C7. From there the dominant resolves in the usual way. For a dominant built on G, G7sus4 falls to G7 by moving C to B, and G7 then resolves to C.
Is C7sus4 a dominant seventh chord?
It has a minor seventh and a root, so it keeps the dominant colour. It lacks the major third, so it has no tritone and sounds less directional than C7. Many writers treat it as a dominant with a suspension, and it appears on the dominant in rock, pop and jazz before the third arrives.