Dora Lam joined the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra as Assistant Principal Cello in 2006. Previously, Dora had served as principal cellist of the Civic Orchestra of Chicago, and performed regularly with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.  She has also served as principal cellist in numerous festivals including the Pacific Music Festival, Asian Youth Orchestra, and Spoleto Festival US.

Dora has had the privilege of working with many renowned conductors, including Daniel Barenboim, Pierre Boulez, Sergiu Comissiona, Christoph von Dohnanyi, Christoph Eschenbach, Bernard Haitink, Lorin Maazel, Leonard Slatkin, and Jaap van Zweden. Also an avid chamber musician, Dora has performed with members of the Vienna Philharmonic and worked with members of the Beaux Arts Trio, Juilliard Quartet, and Vermeer Quartet.

Dora's earliest music lessons were with her father, Lam Ming-cheung, and she later enrolled in the Hong Kong Music Office. Dora began her formal training with Ray Wang at The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts (HKAPA). Subsequently, she studied with Stephen Kates on scholarship at the Peabody Conservatory of Music, the United States' first academy of music. There she received both her Bachelor's and Master's degrees in Music. She continued her studies on scholarship with Alan Stepansky at the Manhattan School of Music, and with John Sharp at the Roosevelt University.

Currently, Dora is a faculty member at HKAPA, Hong Kong Baptist University and The Chinese University of Hong Kong.

林頴於2006年加入香港管弦樂團成為助理首席大提琴。她曾任芝加哥市民管弦樂團的首席大提琴，又經常與芝加哥交響樂團演出，亮相於享負盛名的拉維尼亞音樂節。她亦曾任多個音樂節的首席大提琴，如：大平洋音樂節、亞洲青年管弦樂團、美國斯伯拉圖藝術節等。

林頴曾跟不少著名的指揮合作，包括巴倫邦、布烈茲、哥美士安拿、杜南意、艾遜巴赫、海廷克、馬捷爾、史拉健、梵志登等。她熱心室樂演奏，曾跟維也納愛樂、美藝三重奏、茱利亞四重奏、維米爾四重奏成員合作演出。

林頴自幼跟父親林明璋習琴，後來入讀音樂事務處的課程。她在香港演藝學院受正統訓練，師隨王磊教授，其後，獲獎學金於美國第一所音樂學院－皮博蒂音樂學院隨凱斯學藝，並於該校取得學士及碩士學位。她於曼克頓音樂學院繼續進修，師隨史提班斯基，又於羅斯褔大學隨夏普學藝。

林頴現分別於香港演藝學院、香港浸會大學和香港中文大學任教。