I like to have music playing, although some turbo's are so loud as to make this pointless. I usually end up wearing only my cycling shorts, I just get too hot otherwise. The programme is set up for a bike with 52 and 42 tooth chainwheels. I happen to have 46 and 36 on my bike, with an 11 tooth smallest cog. To compensate for the smaller chainwheels I use a cog 2 teeth smaller than specified below.
Cadence is all important.
I have an Avocet45 cycle computer which gives me my cadence, and invariably I have to work harder and harder in each set to maintain the specified rpm. If I ignore the cadence reading I end up going too slow, and not getting the maximum benefit from the set. Always warm up and warm down. The warm up and warm down are the same for each session - do not cut them short. Try to maintain your racing position, especially when going hard.