The Friction of the Bow and the Raven’s Wing in Fables

Transmission 322: Interview with Isabel Pine

Isabel Pine abandoned the rigid architecture of the classical ensemble for the unscripted acoustics of the British Columbian wilderness. Her debut widely distributed album, Fables, was recorded in the autumn of 2024 at a remote cabin and its immediate surroundings. Using a setup of viola, cello, violin, and double bass, Pine treated environmental artifacts—wind and avian activity—as rhythmic components equal to the instrumental input.

Title: Fables
Artist: Isabel Pine
Release Date: 2026-05-23
Genres: Avant-garde, Contemporary Classical, Experimental Music
Label: Kranky
Description: Isabel Pine releases Fables on Beacon Sound, May 23, 2026. A study of strings and field recordings from the British Columbian wilderness.

The recording process on Fables relies on close-miking to isolate the mechanical friction of the bow, a departure from the blended acoustics of concert halls. Isabel Pine is a classically trained multi-instrumentalist whose prior discography consists of self-released singles on Bandcamp. Fables is scheduled for release on May 23, 2026, via Kranky.

What was the specific catalyst that pushed you away from the classical ensemble path toward experimental music? 

I think I realized that I loved music but not in the way that I had been practicing and playing it. For years there had been a big gap between what I was playing and what I was listening to. I ended up taking a few years away from viola before coming back to it when I was ready. At that point I knew that the music that I was the most excited about had sounds or feelings that I hadn’t heard or felt before. When I started playing again, it wasn’t practicing the same scales or passages but instead exploring the instrument and the depth of different sounds it could make. There’s so much freedom when experimentation is part of your foundation. 

Which artists or records first showed you that the viola could exist outside of a traditional score?

There were artists like Hildur Guðnadóttir, Colin Stetson or Max Richter who were doing things that I loved with classical instruments, but no one with viola specifically. Viola was just the instrument that I had and knew. I remember listening to Kelsey Lu’s album, Church, and being really inspired by how they used the cello. It works so well with their songwriting and voice. The first track, ‘Dreams’, has a long introduction of just cello harmonics that I thought was really beautiful. 

How has your relationship with the viola changed since you started integrating electronics? 

I hear what I play more and more from a textural place now. I love close-micing to get all of the small details that you would never hear otherwise. There’s infinite possibilities and sounds that you can make with different mic placement and ways of playing. I’m a lot more creative with viola now because so much feels possible.

What was the first “DIY” hurdle that your college degree didn’t prepare you for? 

I learned almost everything outside of my college degree and instead through friends and the internet. I think seeing so many people doing things themselves made me realize that I could too. 

To what extent did the “scene” around you—or the lack of one—influence your decision to go solo? 

I started recording during the pandemic when we were living in a small town so that was part of it, but I also remember feeling that it was important for me to really know my sound before working with other people. I was more of a student in my classical music trajectory and I wanted to make sure I was grounded in the sounds that I wanted to be making. 

Classical training is obsessed with precision. When did you decide to start chasing the imperfection of the sound? 

I don’t think I started chasing the imperfection of sound. It was more that I stopped chasing perfection and let things be. Imperfection almost feels like the wrong word at this point. I’d say things changed when I started recording though, you hear differently when you play into a microphone with headphones on.

Why was it essential for you to record in the British Columbian autumn specifically, rather than any other season? And how did this influence the sound of the album? 

That was just the time of year that I was there recording, but it happens to be one of the most incredible seasons. The larches gradually turn gold and the peaks start to get a dusting of snow. The last burst of color, the days gradually turning grey, it’s impossible not to be inspired by the fall there.

What was the most difficult track to finish on Fables, and why? 

It might’ve been the track ‘Fables’ – I had to hone it in and take away a lot of notes in the final stages. Recording can be so fun that I end up with a lot of layers. They might’ve been important for the composition process but in the end they don’t need to be there. It’s not always easy to know what’s necessary at that stage because you get so used to how it’s been.

Photos by Isabel Pine

Matteo Damiani

Matteo Damiani is an Italian photographer and author. Curator of the sites Retrofuturista.com; weirditaly.com; china-underground.com and others