My appearance on the rostrum was greeted warmly, there was applause which I acknowledged. When all was quiet I pushed the first button. The house curtains rose to reveal Larionov's incredible, absurd, colourful curtain, which provoked an outburst of movement and laughter in the auditorium. When this quietened down once more I pushed the second knob (the warning signal) and launched into the music. After six bars I pushed it again and the Larionov curtain began its ascent, but on its way up it got caught and continued on the skew. However, it was soon righted, and this was the only untoward incident; everything went smoothly after this. Needless to say, I could see very little of what was happening on stage. As for the orchestra, it had pulled itself together for the first performance and played, one might almost say well. The end of the work receievd an enthusiastic reception.