BEETHOVEN: Symphonies Nos. 4 & 8. Andre Previn conducting the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. RCA Victor Red Seal 60362-2-RC.

Previn detractors beware. In both these symphonies Previn offers his usual leisurely tempos, yet here they seem expansive, not sleepy. Detail is king, with meticulous attention paid to rhythmic exactness, clear articulation, varied accents and, above all, orchestral balance. One can hear everything: bows drawing across strings in the double basses, each note and color in tutti chords, motor rhythms purring below main themes. And it’s through the sheer accumulation of all this detail--not through any forced heroics--that Previn guides each movement inevitably to its logical ends. His phrasing of melody is restrained yet elegantly poetic and climaxes have genuine gravitas . RCA captures it all vividly, even giving a sense of the spacing of the orchestra.