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A dissonance created by holding a note from the previous chord while the other voices move, then resolving it stepwise downward.
Suspensions are the primary source of expressive dissonance in tonal music. The three stages: preparation (consonant note), suspension (note is held while other voices change, creating dissonance), resolution (note steps down to consonance). 4–3 and 7–6 suspensions are the most common. Chain suspensions for intense effect.
Bach's chorales are rich with suspensions — nearly every phrase contains 4–3 or 7–6 suspensions that add expressive tension to the harmonic flow.
Suspension is one of 1760 terms in the Gradus musical dictionary: the words, abbreviations and instrument names that appear in printed scores, plus the vocabulary composers use to talk about them.
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