Born in Sofia, Bulgaria, his formal musical training began in Israel under Paul Ben-Haim.
After a short stint in Rome, Lazarof settled in the United States, studying with Harold Shapero and Arthur Berger at Brandeis University.
After earning a master's degree in 1959, Lazarof began teaching composition at UCLA and was active in promoting the music of his contemporaries.
[1] In December 2007, Janice and Henri Lazarof gave the Los Angeles County Museum of Art 130 mostly Modernist works estimated to be worth more than $100 million.
[2] The collection includes 20 works by Picasso, watercolors and paintings by Paul Klee and Wassily Kandinsky and a considerable number of sculptures by Alberto Giacometti, Constantin Brâncuși, Henry Moore, Willem de Kooning, Joan Miró, Louise Nevelson, Archipenko and Arp.