Selected Works

Over the course of his career, Lazarof published 126 compositions. His works feature technically challenging passages and unique combinations of instruments playing a wide range of textures, dynamics, and rhythms. His style was in a constant state of evolution, always pushing boundaries—for musicians, and for himself; he refused to be easily categorized into a particular school or ideology of music. His creative process has been beautifully recorded in his manuscripts, which follow many works from conception to final product.

When preparing to write for an orchestra, Lazarof would spend time watching the orchestra perform. He wanted to listen, to research, and to hear where they were strongest. Only then would he write the piece, often sketching out specifically where the musicians should sit. He often conducted his own pieces and continued doing so into his 70s. On this page you can enjoy clips from some of Lazarof’s performed works while viewing pages from his draft compositions and stage arrangements. The full manuscript materials and audio files for these and many other Lazarof pieces can be found on the Brandeis Distinctive Collections page.