Born in Käkisalmi, Russian Karelia, he was a Finnish composer. He studied at the Helsinki Music Institute from 1892 and with Robert Fuchs in Vienna from 1899. From 1911, he taught at his alma mater, the Helsinki Music Institute. Although his compositional style was overshadowed by Jean Sibelius and he had low recognition, he left behind nationalistic and more lyrical works than Sibelius. He composed many small-scale works rather than large-scale ones. His main works include symphonies, orchestral music, chamber music, piano music, and opera.