Elaine Taylor, mother of Lucille, provided a strong nurturing influence on both her and her siblings. The children, who practiced a string instrument and piano daily for an hour each and rehearsed for a third hour as a string quartet, achieved at a remarkable level.

For six years, from 1965 to 1971, the precocious playing of the children and the excellence of their work as a string quartet stunned audiences and music critics alike. The Palo Alto Times described the response to the Taylor String Quartet, following a performance of the family for the annual conference of the Music Teachers' Association of California in 1971: "When 300 music teachers rise to give a performing group a standing ovation, the players can be sure they have received quite a tribute."

The quartet toured in Europe, Poland, and Russia, playing in famous venues with unqualified success. In the late 1970s Elaine took a three-week tour with her children, traveling as The Taylor String Quartet from California to Texas, to Mexico, and then to Washington, D.C.. At the University of Monterey, the audience responded to their concert with a prolonged standing ovation, shouts of bravo, and a cascade of flowers on the stage. This would be the last tour the group made with their mother, who died in a car accident in 1978.

As an adult, Taylor has served as head of the string program at Montemorelos University. In 1989, she was Host and Artistic Director for the International Viola Congress when it was held at Redlands University. A frequent recitalist, she has given numerous programs in notable venues in the U.S., Europe, Central America, and the Caribbean and won awards at the Coleman Chamber Music and the Joseph Fischoff National Chamber Music competitions.

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