Yanyan Lin is a cellist and chamber musician whose career spans Asia, Europe, and North America.

Lin has appeared at major international festivals including the Ravinia Festival, Piatigorsky Cello Festival, Santander Festival, Cellofest.fi, Rutesheim Cello Festival, Saito Kinen Festival, and the Shanghai Conservatory Cello Festival. He has worked with distinguished musicians including Jian Wang, Steven Isserlis, Frans Helmerson, Gary Hoffman, David Geringas, Ralph Kirshbaum, Midori, Miriam Fried, Robert Levin, and Kim Kashkashian. He was selected for the London Symphony Orchestra’s Strings Scheme, where he worked with Sir Simon Rattle during the 2018–19 season, and was also selected for the Seiji Ozawa Music Academy.

A dedicated chamber musician, Lin is a member of the MILA Quartet, recipient of Third Prize at the 2025 Schoenfeld International String Competition. His chamber music performances include an appearance at Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall with Trio Zhong and a UK tour with the Cordiera Piano Trio. Lin’s chamber music prizes include First Prize at the Harold Caxton Chamber Music Prize and Second Prize at the American Protégé International Piano and Strings Competition. His principal mentors include Christoph Richter, Ian Brown, Michael Dussek, and Yu Yinjia.

Alongside his performing career, Lin pursues a strong interest in Baroque music and historically informed performance practice. His doctoral research at the Royal Academy of Music focused on performing Bach’s works for keyboard, lute, and violin on the solo cello, exploring the relationship between historical performance practice and contemporary interpretation, as well as new possibilities for cello repertoire and concert programming.

He studied at the Shanghai Conservatory before moving to London on a full scholarship to study at the Royal Academy of Music. He holds a master's degree and an Advanced Diploma in Performance and was awarded the Royal Academy of Music Foundation Award and an Honorary Diploma. His principal teachers include Li Jiwu, Jo Cole, and Christoph Richter.

Lin joined chamber music faculty team at the Tianjin Juilliard Pre-College in 2025. He formerly served as a cello tutor at King’s College London.