Leja’s Love of Music Has No Limits
by Tim Froberg
Spend a few minutes with John Leja, and his passion for music pours out. It’s as clear and vibrant as the opening guitar riff to Sweet Child O’ Mine. Music is Leja’s life. He teaches, performs, and writes it … at an extremely high level. Leja’s full-time job is band director at Hortonville High School. But he’s probably better known for his part-time gig: a musician with one of the area’s most popular rock bands, Boogie and the Yo-Yoz.
When he’s not jamming with his band or teaching his students music, Leja is writing it. He has composed percussion pieces that have been sold across the globe in places like Singapore, Brazil, Denmark, Sweden, Bangkok, Argentina, and Italy. Leja also writes original music for another local band he fronts, Same Same but Different.
“John is the consummate musician,” said Eric Peters, lead guitarist and founder of Boogie and the Yo-Yoz. “He’s like a unicorn. Not only is he an incredibly good musician and entertainer, but he’s funny and outgoing.
“All those attributes play into him as a teacher. My son (Ethan) had John as a teacher in the Hortonville School District when he was learning to play saxophone. He really liked ‘Mr. Leja’ and that was before John was in our band. When I told him that John was going to join our band, he said, ‘That makes 100% sense.’”
Leja directs three different bands at Hortonville High: two jazz ensembles and a marching pep band. His job involves music selection, choreography, comprising drill charts (a layout determining the spacing and positioning of the bands for on-field performances), and simply working with students to improve their musical skills.
“I always wanted to be a teacher,” Leja said. “But when I was younger, I was super set on being a math teacher. And then, right around my sophomore year of high school, I realized that not everyone loves math as much as I do. But everyone loves music. So that became my passion.”
It’s a passion he joyfully shares with his students and audiences.
“The part I enjoy the most about teaching is helping the kids share music with other people,” he said. “Last year, I started taking the jazz band to nursing homes. It became my favorite thing to do because everyone was so grateful we were sharing music with them. The kids loved it and learned so much from those performances.”
Introducing young people to music they have not previously heard is another part of the job Leja relishes.
“I teach with another band director (Breanna Wozniczka), and a couple of years ago we chose a Chicago medley to have the kids play,” Leja said. “We were discussing it and were like, ‘Well, the kids really don’t know Chicago. Will they want to play it?’
“But I thought, ‘Well, it doesn’t matter that they don’t know it. It’s something they need to know and I’ll bet they will enjoy it.’ So we had the kids listen to Chicago and I asked them: ‘Who has actually heard any of these songs before?’ Only three hands went up and there were like 60 kids in the room.
“So I asked them: ‘Do your parents listen to this?’ One kid says, ‘No, my grandpa listens to it.’ But after everyone had learned that piece, sure enough, everybody loved Chicago. They started listening to Chicago just for fun. Some of these older tunes by groups like the Beatles and Led Zeppelin, the kids aren’t necessarily trying to listen to them. But once you play it for them, all of a sudden they’re into them.”
And that’s music to Leja’s ears.
“That’s exactly why I got into teaching,” he said. “I wanted to help kids become passionate about music. I wanted to help them have the skills to become either lifelong players of music or lifelong lovers of music.
I love being able to relate to these kids and show them what they’re capable of.”
Leja, 30, has taught at Hortonville High School for the past four years and previously taught music at Greenville Middle School for four years. This is Leja’s fourth year with Boogie and the Yo-Yoz. Playing the trumpet is his primary role with Boogie, but Leja is no one-trick
pony. He regularly assists with the guitar and vocals and has played
the saxophone, trombone, and drums in concert.
The incredibly versatile Leja also knows how to play the piano, tuba, flute, accordion, clarinet, bassoon, and baritone.
“John has the chops to play just about anything we ask him to play,” said Peters. “Trumpet is his main thing, but he’s a very, very good guitar player, and he’s good at so many different instruments. When he auditioned for us, I said right away, ‘This is what we need.’ And he’s got such a great personality. He instantly became family.”
Boogie is a skilled band loaded with talent and plays 60 to 70 shows per year. The group covers a variety of genres, and its top priority is to entertain audiences. Boogie will host its annual Christmas show at the Fox Cities Performing Arts Center on Dec. 6 at 7:30 p.m.
“Playing with Boogie is awesome,” Leja said. “We get a lot of energetic crowds, and it’s so much fun to play in front of thousands of people multiple times during the summer. We have fun — even if the audience isn’t having fun. I will go out of my way to make sure we’re having fun.
“We will bring energy no matter what. Even if I’m sick, I’ll still be jumping around and making sure the audience is having fun because that’s what people go to these shows for.”
“I had always planned on being a music teacher, but had never planned on being a performer. What’s interesting about our band is that most of the others don’t have a formal music background. Take Eric (Peters), for instance. He doesn’t really read music, but he can hear it really well, and it doesn’t matter because he’s such a great guitarist.”
Leja even met his wife, Natalie, through music…at a middle school band camp at Appleton North. Natalie is also a music band teacher in the Little Chute School District. The couple became parents over the summer when their daughter, Kaliana, entered the world.
Leja’s love of music started in his childhood while growing up in the Adams-Friendship area near Wisconsin Dells. His father, Jim, played the accordion, and his mother, Janet, plucked the guitar. John’s older brother, Jimmy, also played guitar and was in school band programs. John took piano lessons as a kid and learned to play the guitar and drums. Leja went on to take school band classes and became a member of the Adams-Friendship High School marching band. He eventually earned a bachelor’s degree in music from the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point.
“I ended up being the only one who did it for a living, but music was always a family thing,” Leja said. “My parents still play a little, but it was my older brother who kind of paved the way for me in music.”
Leja’s second band, Same Same but Different, is an indie-alternative rock group that includes another Boogie member, Jacob Opperman, who is a music teacher at Fond du Lac High School. Leja writes the music and does lead vocals, along with playing additional instruments.
“I started this around 2020, before I was even in Boogie and the Yo-Yoz,” said Leja. “I like indie rock and enjoy writing original music. I never really pictured myself as a lead singer, but I can’t imagine anyone else singing the songs that I write. We don’t play as much as we want to. We’d love to play more, but it’s always fun when we do.”
Although music plays a prominent part in Leja’s life, it doesn’t define him. He has numerous hobbies that range from family time to kayaking, hiking, camping, and downhill skiing. He’s the ski club advisor at Hortonville High and takes up to 60 students on winter ski trips.
Leja is also accomplished in the kitchen. He’s a top-notch cook who worked for three years as a sushi chef in Stevens Point during his college days at a well-known restaurant, Matsu Ya.
“I still go there for sushi — it’s super great,” Leja said. “I love to cook and love being busy. I love a full schedule.”
And he certainly loves music.
This article was originally published in the December 2025/January 2026 issue of Appleton Monthly Magazine.
