In 2016, he was a recipient of the Morton Gould Young Composer Award from the ASCAP Foundation in recognition of his composition Dreams of the Fallen.
[5] and was awarded the 2019 Raymond W. Brock Commission of the American Choral Directors Association, in this case for the composition "A Silence Haunts Me.
The recording features fourteen compositions performed by the choral ensemble Conspirare of Austin, Texas, conducted by Craig Hella Johnson.
In 2020, Naxos Records released the album Sing, Wearing the Sky, a collection of 10 choral compositions by Runestad performed by the Kantorei choir of Denver conducted by Joel Rinsema.
[14] It received its New York City premiere with the West Point Glee Club and the Park Avenue Chamber Symphony at Carnegie Hall on 19 November 2016, conducted by David Bernard.
[16] An audio recording of a 2015 performance of Dreams of the Fallen in St. Paul, Minnesota, was broadcast nationwide on 29 May 2017 (Memorial Day) through the National Public Radio network.