What notes are in the Bb 13sus4 chord?

The Bb 13sus4 chord contains the notes Bb · Eb · F · Ab · C · G: the root Bb with the intervals 1P, 4P, 5P, 7m, 9M, 13M stacked above it. Play them together for the chord or one after another for an arpeggio. The lowest note is normally Bb, but any chord tone can take the bass in an inversion.

What intervals make up the Bb 13sus4 chord?

Measured from Bb, the Bb 13sus4 chord stacks the intervals 1P, 4P, 5P, 7m, 9M, 13M. The quality of the third and of the seventh, if there is one, is what gives the chord its character; the rest of the notes colour it. Every interval in the formula links to its own page, with its sound.

How do I play the Bb 13sus4 chord?

On guitar the most common Bb 13sus4 shape is x11113, read from the lowest string to the highest; the instrument panel above shows several more with their fingerings. On piano play Bb3 · Eb4 · F4 · Ab4 · C5 · G5 with the right hand, or move the root down into the left hand and keep the rest above it. Every shape on this page plays when you press it.

Bb 13sus4 Chord (Bb13sus4): Notes, Piano & Guitar

Play it on your instrument

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Voicings on the piano

Voicing	Notes	Play it on your instrument
Closed, root position	Bb3 · Eb4 · F4 · Ab4 · C5 · G5
Open (drop 2)	Bb3 · C4 · Eb4 · F4 · Ab4 · G5
Shell	Bb3 · Eb4 · Ab4
Rootless	Eb3 · Ab3 · C4 · G4

Tap a key or a fret to hear it.

Anatomy

Bb 13sus4 (Bb13sus4) contains the notes Bb · Eb · F · Ab · C · G, each with a role measured as an interval from the root.

Read on: how triads are built · seventh chords · extensions

Inversions

An inversion of Bb 13sus4 puts a chord tone other than Bb in the bass; the name after the slash is that bass note.

Where it lives

The keys and the scales Bb 13sus4 belongs to.

In which keys

Bb 13sus4 is diatonic to 4 keys; the numeral is its degree and the label its harmonic function.

Ab majorII13sus4Subdominant
F minorIV13sus4Subdominant
Eb majorV13sus4Dominant
C minorVII13sus4Subdominant

Extensions beyond the seventh count when every note sits in the key.

Scales that contain it

Bb 13sus4 fits inside these scales, each built on Bb.

Bb DorianBb · C · Db · Eb · F · G · Ab
Bb MixolydianBb · C · D · Eb · F · G · Ab
Bb BebopBb · C · D · Eb · F · G · Ab · A
Bb Bebop MinorBb · C · Db · D · Eb · F · G · Ab
Bb Composite BluesBb · C · Db · D · Eb · Fb · F · G · Ab

Related chords

Chords that share most of their notes with Bb 13sus4: simpler and richer stacks of the same notes, and the substitutes a chart would accept.

Simpler

Bb11Bb · F · Ab · C · Eb
Bb9sus4Bb · Eb · F · Ab · C
Bb7sus4Bb · Eb · F · Ab
Bbsus24Bb · C · Eb · F
Bbsus4Bb · Eb · F
Bbsus2Bb · C · F
Bb5Bb · F

13sus4 on every root

C13sus4 C#13sus4 Db13sus4 D13sus4 D#13sus4 Eb13sus4 E13sus4 F13sus4 F#13sus4 Gb13sus4 G13sus4 G#13sus4 Ab13sus4 A13sus4 B13sus4

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Understanding the Bb 13sus4 chord

Names and symbols

Bb13sus4 is the chord symbol for Bb 13sus4; it is also written Bb13sus.

sus on its own means sus4, and 7sus means 7sus4. sus2 is sometimes written add9(no3), which names the same notes from another angle.

Common questions

What notes are in the Bb 13sus4 chord?: The Bb 13sus4 chord contains the notes Bb · Eb · F · Ab · C · G: the root Bb with the intervals 1P, 4P, 5P, 7m, 9M, 13M stacked above it. Play them together for the chord or one after another for an arpeggio. The lowest note is normally Bb, but any chord tone can take the bass in an inversion.
What intervals make up the Bb 13sus4 chord?: Measured from Bb, the Bb 13sus4 chord stacks the intervals 1P, 4P, 5P, 7m, 9M, 13M. The quality of the third and of the seventh, if there is one, is what gives the chord its character; the rest of the notes colour it. Every interval in the formula links to its own page, with its sound.
How do I play the Bb 13sus4 chord?: On guitar the most common Bb 13sus4 shape is x11113, read from the lowest string to the highest; the instrument panel above shows several more with their fingerings. On piano play Bb3 · Eb4 · F4 · Ab4 · C5 · G5 with the right hand, or move the root down into the left hand and keep the rest above it. Every shape on this page plays when you press it.