The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 10 letter word DRUM-MAJOR
I've seen this crossword clue in Financial Times
D
R
U
M
-
M
A
J
O
R
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "band leader" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case band leader = drum-major.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.