Paul's father wanted him to become a farmer, and he first studied agriculture at Mustiala Agriculture Center in Tammela. After three years of studies, Paul's father let Paul manage a farm the father owned on the Ruissalo island outside Turku. Soon growing bored with farming, Paul decided to become an artist. In 1886, he began studying music in Helsinki. During this period he became a socialist and shed Wiedersheim from his surname. Studying at the Music Academy in Helsinki, he became a friend of Finnish composer Jean Sibelius. Both studied with the famous Italian composer and pianist Ferruccio Busoni, who brought them to Germany when he moved there from Helsinki in 1889.