Rockford native wins Emmy for musical composition
Composer, conductor and Rockford native Jake Runestad can add "Emmy Award winner" to his resume.
Runestad earned a 2022 Emmy in the category of musical composition for his environmentally-charged work titled “Earth Symphony.”
Runestad’s 35-minute composition for chorus and orchestra is a five-part dramatic monologue from the voice of Mother Earth that imagines her hope for humanity, her discovery of its power, her ruination at its hands, her lament at its loss and her eventual recovery.
“Earth Symphony is my most ambitious and most important work to date,” Runestad, 36, said in a news release. “I’m thrilled it has gained visibility in this way and I hope it spurs questions, dialogue and action to care for our planet.”
The Emmy Awards were handed out Sept. 12 in Los Angeles.
More:Rockford native earns Emmy nomination
While the Emmy was Runestad’s first such honor, he is no stranger to other awards and accolades.
Runestad was nominated for a 2020 Grammy Award for “The Hope of Loving,” an album devoted to his choral music by Austin, Texas-based choir Conspirare.
In 2016, Runestad won the ASCAP Foundation Morton Gould Young Composer Award which recognizes young creators of concert music.
Runestad was raised in Rockford and is a 2004 graduate of Guilford High School, where he played saxophone in the school band. He began composing music during his senior year at Guilford.
Runestad earned a Masters degree in composition from the Peabody Conservatory of the Johns Hopkins University.
He is currently living in Minneapolis.
Ken DeCoster covers business news and features. Contact him at 815-987-1391, kdecoster@rrstar.com or @DeCosterKen.
This article originally appeared on Rockford Register Star: Rockford native Jake Runestad wins Emmy Award for Earth Symphony
