I remember David Waterman (the cellist of the Endellion Quartet) saying, apropos of Endellion rehearsal, that one could only progress so far by trying to subordinate one's own part to the existence of others. He said that it was easier for a quartet if the leader simply played with the confidence of his own momentum, and that it was surprisingly easy to follow someone who took charge of a phrase, or section, without constant reference to the other parts. After he said this I tried it out myself in the next available rehearsal, and found that it really worked, so I still try to do it, and know that when other people do it, it is indeed easy to follow. << less