Our Story

All About Bounding Main

Bounding Main is a group of vocalists that sing richly harmonic versions of traditional maritime songs. “Beautiful Harmonies with a Maritime Flair!” Their shows are filled with spirit, humor and harmony; their arrangements of traditional nautical music bring the listener into the world of fellowship, adventure and romance.

Each member of Bounding Main — Dean Calin, Christie Dalby, Gina Dalby, Jon Krivitzky and David Yondorf — is a music and theater veteran, with backgrounds as varied as falconry to juggling to stage combat! Since 2003, their performances and CDs have been well received with brisk US and international sales. They have performed at music festivals, maritime festivals, tall ships events, maritime museums, renaissance faires, folk music venues and corporate events on both sides of the Atlantic.

The group calls its headquarters Grayslake, Illinois.

Bounding Main performing at the Janesville Renaissance Faire, 2009

Bounding Main officially came together January 19, 2003

Before coming together as a group, all of the members of Bounding Main knew at least one other member through their participation in various environmental gigs and singing groups. Little did they know that each meeting was building up to what would, in a few short years, become Bounding Main. The members of the crew (Dean Calin, Christie Dalby, Gina Dalby, David Yondorf and Jon Krivitzky) gathered together for the first time on January 19, 2003, where they took some time to get to know one another, sing a bit and discuss putting a group together. They decided they really liked each other and had a great time singing together. After much research and debate a name was settled upon: Bounding Main. (As in “Sailing, Sailing Over the . . .”)

The songs were also developing. The quintuplet, much to their surprise, had an incredible and unique blend of men’s and women’s voices. Dean had a particular vision for Bounding Main and introduced the group to songs of the sea: maritime songs, ballads, shanties. Songs in this musical genre expressed the complexity that surrounded an old-time mariner’s lifestyle and its amazing breadth of emotions: excitement, danger, bravado, loneliness, greed, lust and, well, drinking.

Serendipitously, the musical style the group chose to perform in had proven to be a popular one. What with living on the Great Lakes and all the festivals that entails, coupled with the trending societal craze for pirates, there was plenty of work for this unique group. With the performers coming from improvisational theater backgrounds, a large element of humor worked its way into their shows.

On a tour or Germany in the summer of 2008 that began with the international music venue, Festival Maritim, the group performed for US military personnel at the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center and moved on to an interview and performance on Armed Forces Radio, a performance at the Military Weather Command facility, a performance at Sembach Air Force Base and finally at Spangdahlem Air Force Base. Additional funding for this trip was donated to the Wounded Warriors Project.

Since 2003 when they began, with countless musically thrilling and humor-filled performances on both sides of the Atlantic under their collective belt and three CD’s flying off the electronic shelves, Bounding Main is still going strong. With a show history from Chicago to Cracow, the members still manage to have as much fun singing together as always.

Thanks, Bounding Mainiacs, for all of your support!

Meet The Crew