The Daily Routine"Menu"
I don't believe you need to play the exact same patterns each day. In fact,
I prefer variety.
Remember: The patterns may change, but the goals don't.
The Daily Routine "Menu" is like a restaurant menu. Choose some examples from each course, including the appetizer. You don't need to get through the whole menu in a single practice session. Material in the later courses, for example, might be better served later in your practice day.
Pick and choose from a given course according to your needs.
Or...perhaps you'd rather not have to make choices. Here is a Daily Building Block Routine that spells everything out.
Appetizer:
Breathing/Buzzing/Glissing | Mouthpiece Concerts
First Course:
Flow Sequences | Simple Tunes | Easy Lip Slurs | Articulation
Second Course:
Extending Range | Long Tones / Tuning | Foundation Etudes
Third Course:
Challenging Lip Slurs | Pattern Building (Scales, Arpeggios, Intervals)
Dessert:
Duets | Creativity/Improvisation | Playing by Ear/Playing in Keys
Appetizer
I'm no great expert on breathing but I have included some thoughts on breathing
in, and blowing out
in my BoneTips section.
I like to start with some easy, descending glisses on the mouthpiece. Start
with a moderate drop:

With each repetition, extend until you have a long, unbroken gliss into the
pedal register:
Next, buzz some arches (a.k.a. sirens). Make sure the sound is smooth and
easy. Don't force.
Start with smaller arches:
And extend to wider arches.

You might try using the piano to define end points of the mouthpiece glisses. This is useful when you are setting goals to go a little bit lower each day.
Follow this with some easy, descending glisses on the trombone. Really fill up and empty the lungs.

First Course
I believe it is important to maintain a musical frame of mind in your daily routine. Choose patterns or melodies that have musical direction.
Flow
Here is a nice flowing sequence
you can buzz and play. If you have two players, you might try a flowing pattern
in the form of a duet.
Simple Tunes
Simple melodies are indispensable. Buzz them, transpose
them, turn them into duets. Here is a link to a collection of 12
simple tunes on this website. (.pdf file).
Easy Lip Slurs
Lip slurs have so many benefits. They
are especially helpful for the development of embouchure control. The lip
slurs in my book are useful for
daily routines. Here are some other
lip slur patterns you might try.
Articulation
There are a variety of techniques you should visit when working on articulation.
These 14 exercises cover much of this variety,
including legato tonguing, slide coordination, rapid patterns, interval accuracy
patterns and rhythmic accuracy. (I'm not wild about the term "tonguing"
since I believe the air plays a much more important role than the tongue).
Back to top
Second Course
Extending Range
Extend first into the high range, then the low range. Don't label some notes
as "high" and overreact to them. Watch out for some of the bad habits
that players resort to: mouthpiece pressure, 'smiling' embouchure, resetting
to a special 'high note' embouchure. The BoneTips
has a section devoted to high
range development. Here are two patterns for range extension: a turn-around
pattern and a pentatonic pattern.
Long Tones
When doing long tones, it is important to remain maintain
a sense of musical direction. Here are two patterns, one a variation
on the Remington pattern, and another focusing on octaves.
Tuning
For intonation practice, it is also useful to practice tuning to a drone.
This website has 12 perfect-fifth
drones you can download. Here is a simple arpeggio
round for two players with a drone.
Foundation Etudes
I have a saying, "Some
etudes build you up, others challenge what you have built." It
is important to revisit those easier, "build-you-up" etudes regularly.
Here are some examples:
- Some of the early Bordogni/Rochut Melodious Etudes (esp. #'s 2, 3, 4, 5, 8, 13, 15, and 16)
- Jaroslav Cimera, 55 Phrasing Studies (out of print at the moment)
- Reginald Fink, Introduction to Legato
- Makovecz, Selected Studies, v.1
- Mantia/Randall ed., Arban's Famous Method (esp. pp. 31-45)
In a recent project, I have written 30 of my own foundation etudes which I hope to publish eventually. Here are two examples: "Mournful doloroso" and "Lively and Precise"
Third Course: Challenging Lip Slurs, Pattern Building
As time permits, I hope to add some examples here.
Dessert: Duets / Creativity/Improvisation / Playing by Ear/Playing in Keys
As time permits, I hope to add some examples here.