Hello, Sarah -- congratulations on this honor!  I wrote an article for first-time conductors of honor choirs that may be helpful.  You can find it here:

 

 

Yes; Congratulations, Sarah!

I have never conducted an Honor Festival-type performance, but I have been a preparing teacher for my own school, my private voice students, as well as warming-up the large groups while waiting for the Guest Director's plane to land ;) .  I have observed some of the best - Dr. Norma Raybon, Jing-ling Tam, Randall Stroope, etc.

These events are always wonderful, of course - educational, exhilarating, motivating for students, teachers, parents/community, etc....

The only thing that makes me sad is that the performances are often significantly less than the last 2 rehearsals; the students peak early.

They have rehearsed all weekend, excitement is high throughout (happiness is a form of stress in that it can produce body, including vocal, tension), they rarely have "down" time, and the most unfortunate thing is that their voices are often somewhat, if not completely, "shot" by performance time.  (Under what [other] circumstances would any wise voice teacher or choral director recommend that young singers sing all weekend?  ;) )

Perhaps you can consider a way to build them up slowly..?   Also, if you need to work with a section (ex. sopranos), or even more importantly, if you sense that some voices are feeling a bit over-taxed, would it be possible to have the altos/seconds "think/mime" their part - this way they are not just lip-syncing, but mentally/artistically engaged - they still follow your cues, etc.  (Possible joke/reward: "Oh altos, that was exquisite/ethereal/your your understanding of pianissimo is so astute - was barely audible...you get the picture ;)  [Obviously, this would be reversed when you work with altos.]

I would also recommend constant reminders to keep their singing well-supported, and tension-free! Please model this as much as possible! They will be so excited about your fresh techniques, etc., that they may forget/accidentally abandon what they already know.

I've known some Guest Directors to work with the organizers in such a way that certain choral sections get to have their break early - say on Friday - and others on Saturday.  This might help to preserve the best free ring of their wonderful, youthful, but somewhat fragile, sound.

Best Wishes!

-Lucy