Elsa, daughter of the Count of Arcole, is terminally ill. Moved by a violin playing Gounod's "Ave Maria" in a small church, she longs to meet the performer, Janko. Welcomed into the Count's villa, Janko falls in love with Elsa during a moonlit encounter on the lake. But the cold worsens Elsa's health. Janko plays the melody one last time as she dies smiling. That same night, Janko lets himself fall into the sea, refusing to outlive his love.