Franz Schubert toils by day as his fatherās clerk while secretly composing in Beethovenās shadow, gaining little recognition until friends persuade publisher Diabelli to host a public performance where he meets and falls for soprano Therese Grob. Abandoning a teaching career, he moves in with artist and poet friends, finds inspiration for the āErlkƶnig,ā and together with Therese sustains himself by performing his songs.