E ninth suspended fourth (E9sus4) chord on guitar
- Notes
- EABDF♯
- Formula
- 145♭79
How to play E9sus4 on guitar
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Shape 1 · 1st position
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Shape 2 · fret 7 · barre
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Shape 3 · fret 2
no 5th (B)
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Shape 4 · fret 4 · barre
no 5th (B)
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Shape 5 · fret 9 · barre
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Shape 6 · fret 11
no 5th (B)
Some shapes leave out: 5th (B). The caption of each one says what is missing. The 5th is the first to go: it barely changes the sound of the chord.
Numbers are fingers: 1 index, 2 middle, 3 ring, 4 pinky. x = do not play the string, o = open string. The coloured dot is the root (E). The same shapes work on acoustic, classical and electric guitar.
E9sus4 inversions on guitar
The same E9sus4 with another chord note in the bass (the lowest note that sounds). The notes stay the same, but the colour changes, and the bass line can move by step from one chord to the next. In a chord symbol, the bass comes after the slash.
5th (B) in the bass2nd inversion · E9sus4/B
5th (B) in the bass2nd inversion · E9sus4/B
7th (D) in the bass3rd inversion · E9sus4/D
7th (D) in the bass3rd inversion · E9sus4/D
About the ninth suspended fourth chord
A suspended dominant with a ninth: the 4th in place of the 3rd and the 9th on top. Soft and ambiguous, it is one of the most used sounds of modern jazz, soul and gospel. It has the same notes as an eleventh chord played without the 3rd; without the 5th, it is the triad on the ♭7 over the root (B♭/C for C9sus4).
Notes and intervals of E9sus4
E9sus4 (E ninth suspended fourth) is built from 5 notes. Each one fills a degree of the chord:
- E · 1 · root
- A · 4 · perfect fourth
- B · 5 · perfect fifth
- D · ♭7 · minor seventh
- F♯ · 9 · ninth
Other E chords
- E
- Em
- E7
- E7M
- Em7
- Em7(b5)
- E°
- E°7
- E+
- Esus2
- Esus4
- E7sus4
- E5
- Eadd9
- E6
- Em6
- E9
- Em(add9)
- Em9
- E7M(9)
- Em(7M)
- E7M(#5)
- E7(b9)
- E6(9)
- Em6(9)
- E11
- Em11
- E13
- Em13
- E7(#9)
- E7(#11)
- E7(b13)
- E7(#5)
- E7M(#11)
- E9sus4
Ninth suspended fourth: other roots
Frequently asked questions
How do you play the E9sus4 chord on guitar?
E9sus4 (E ninth suspended fourth) has 6 fingerings on this page, from easiest to hardest. Each diagram shows the fingers, the open strings (o) and the strings you do not play (x), and you can hear every shape.
What notes are in E9sus4?
The notes of E9sus4 are E, A, B, D, F♯. The formula is 1 · 4 · 5 · ♭7 · 9: root, perfect fourth, perfect fifth, minor seventh, ninth.
What does E9sus4 mean?
E9sus4 is the chord symbol for E ninth suspended fourth. A suspended dominant with a ninth: the 4th in place of the 3rd and the 9th on top. Soft and ambiguous, it is one of the most used sounds of modern jazz, soul and gospel. It has the same notes as an eleventh chord played without the 3rd; without the 5th, it is the triad on the ♭7 over the root (B♭/C for C9sus4).