Yes, this is not uncommon. In voice lessons a teacher will frequently play a line in parallel with the student singing. The purpose is to help you hear it. Eventually every singer needs to be able to hear the line in their head and sing it, actually this is true of all musicians. The only "exercise" I know is continued practice. Instead of playing while you sing, try playing a simple 4 note line (maybe the first four notes of the major scale) and see if you can sing or hum it after you play it (not while you play it). At the very least try to match the first note with you instrument then sing w/o playing. With practice you will get better. Take lessons.
manpreet
Best Answer
2 years ago
I can sing pretty much in tune a lot of melodies, but only when I play the same melody on guitar at the same time. When I hear the melody on a guitar I'm somehow able to follow it with my voice almost perfectly. However when I try to sing the same exact riff without support of guitar I can barely hit any notes. Does anyone had a similar experience and / or know how to overcome it ? Do you know if there are some specific excercise that address this problem ?