The Deutsche Ensemble Akademie e.V. (DEA) was founded in spring 1987 as the umbrella organization of the Förderer der Jungen Deutschen Philharmonie, the Ensemble Modern and the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie. Its goal is to cultivate, popularize and further develop classical and contemporary music. Simultaneously the DEA promotes the interrelationship between particularly qualified musicians and top interpretorial performances. As a promotional association, the DEA was founded due to the fact that the aforementioned ensembles were obliged to cover project costs to a major extent from own income. With financial support, the DEA gives the ensembles their necessary artistic latitude.