Lesson 27 · All 12 keys

Sus2 Chord Trainer

Learn how a sus2 chord is built one semitone-count at a time — a plain fifth with the 3rd replaced by a major 2nd, so the chord is neither major nor minor — then put it to work with three MIDI exercises: playing all 12 sus2 chords around the circle of fourths, and 5 jazz plus 5 gospel chord progressions that show off its open, unresolved color, in every key.

How a sus2 chord is built

A sus2 chord is a 3-note chord — the same "power chord" fifth every triad is built on, but with the 3rd swapped out for a major 2nd instead. Because there's no 3rd at all, a sus2 chord is neither major nor minor — it's suspended, open, and ambiguous. Every sus2 chord — in any of the 12 keys — is built the exact same way, by counting semitones to the right from a root note:

  1. Start on the root — the note that names the chord.
  2. Count 2 semitones to the right to land on the major 2nd (this replaces the 3rd entirely).
  3. From there, count 5 more semitones to the right (7 semitones from the root) to land on the perfect 5th.
Example — D sus2 (Dsus2): start on D, count 2 semitones right to reach E, then 5 more to reach A. D‑E‑A is the Dsus2 chord. The pattern 2, 5 (7 semitones total from root to top) is what makes a chord a "sus2 chord" — every one of the 12 sus2 chords is this same shape, just moved to start on a different key.
Because it has no 3rd, a sus2 chord can't resolve the way a dominant chord does — it just floats, open and unresolved, which is exactly why pianists reach for it as a suspended color, often as a passing step into or out of a plain triad. Watch out for one mix-up: a sus2 chord is not an add9 chord (which keeps the 3rd and adds a 9th on top, rather than removing the 3rd entirely) — even though the added note is the same pitch class in both.

Try it: pick a root and build the chord step by step

Step 1 of 3
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Chord toneNoteSemitones from rootMIDI #

All 12 sus2 chords at a glance

ChordRoot+2 semitones → 2nd+5 semitones → 5th

This MIDI exercise plays all 12 sus2 chords, one after another, moving around the circle of fourths — each chord's root sits a perfect 4th (5 semitones) above the last one: C → F → B♭ → E♭ → A♭ → D♭ → G♭/F♯ → B → E → A → D → G → back to C. Every chord is played as a full 3-note sus2 chord (root, 2nd, and 5th together).

Chord 1 of 12
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The 12 chords, in circle-of-fourths order

#ChordRoot2nd5th

Five jazz chord progressions built around the sus2 chord — mostly using it as an open, ambiguous substitute for a plain triad wherever a suspended color is wanted. Pick a progression and play it in one key or cycle through all 12.

Key of C
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Progression in C

DegreeChordNotes

Five gospel chord progressions built around the sus2 chord — mostly using it as an open, ambiguous substitute for a plain triad wherever a suspended color is wanted. Pick a progression and play it in one key or cycle through all 12.

Key of C
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Progression in C

DegreeChordNotes