We are hugely flattered to have been chosen to compose the BBC's Olympics theme tune. The Games bring everyone in the country together in the spirit of something pleasant and anything that can do that is worth being a part of.
Pressure levels are higher than if it was one of our own songs — this is different as it's something we have been charged to do, with a specific purpose.
People are going to hear it a lot so I really hope they like it.
I'm no athlete myself, so to sit down and write a convincing song about athletics would have been difficult. My inspiration behind the piece, 'First Steps', was that our bass player Pete's daughter took her first steps while we were writing it. His video of that moment captured his sense of pride, ambition and amazement. This tied in well with the idea of the nation's pride, watching and investing our emotion in our athletes at the Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Once I had the lyrics, I considered how the athletes' children and grandchildren would be watching the footage for a long time, so we went for a classical, traditional, timeless sound. The BBC Philharmonic plays the melody and the Olympic Choir sings the vocals. The six-and-a-half minute piece will be used in short bursts to accompany Olympics footage.
I hope the fanfare at the beginning will have people running to the TV to watch. "You shake our world with every step" is a line I'm particularly proud of, as it really captures the Olympic spirit. Olympic and Paralympic athletes are in many respects the best of our species and something to marvel at.
Being a huge Spiderman fan, my favourite events are the high and long jumps — those people can just fly. It's astonishing.
Elbow releases de luxe editions of Cast of Thousands and Leaders of The Free World on 5 March. Visit elbow.co.uk for more details
Interview: Ianthe Butt.
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