ABOUT Judge Bardi Martin
RAISED IN SERVICE • GROUNDED in king county
The Musician Who Became a Judge
Before Bardi Martin was a judge, he was a musician.
For years, he lived a life far removed from the courtroom—playing bass, writing and recording music, performing for audiences, and touring as a member of Seattle’s Candlebox. He remains a songwriter and musician today.
As a member of Candlebox, Bardi co-wrote and recorded music including “Far Behind,” one of the band’s best-known songs. But his connection to music goes beyond the songs themselves. Over the years, he has continued to perform, including at benefit shows supporting charitable causes and community organizations.
For Bardi, music offered an education that has stayed with him.
You have to listen.
A bass player may not always be the most prominent voice in a song, but the bass provides rhythm, structure, and foundation. Playing well means paying attention—not only to your own part, but to everyone around you. It requires preparation, timing, discipline, collaboration, and knowing when to lead and when to support.
Those lessons have a natural connection to the courtroom.
As a judge, Bardi listens to people from very different circumstances and perspectives. Each person who enters a courtroom has a story and deserves to be heard. The responsibility of a judge is to listen carefully, apply the law, weigh the facts, and treat everyone who comes before the court with fairness and respect.
The stage and the courtroom may seem like very different worlds. For Bardi, however, some of the most important lessons traveled with him.
Music taught him to prepare. To pay attention. To work with others. To understand his role within something larger than himself. And perhaps most importantly, to listen.
That part of his story didn’t end when he left the stage.
It became part of who he brought with him to the bench.