Sitting behind the piano before his first set at Zanzibar Blue, Christian Sands appears relaxed and comfortable. Yet certain patrons are quick to remark how this guy seems different from most acts at this Center City jazz hot spot. "It looks like he hasn't fully grown into his hands," someone says, adding, "I don't think he shaves yet."

Turns out Sands does shave, but at age 16, he is rather young to be playing a major jazz venue here in Philadelphia. Snapping his fingers to begin the first tune, he launches into "I've Got Rhythm," his fingers dancing across the keys as he ventures into lively improv on the chord changes. Soon enough the audience is clued in to the fact that this kid's got sturdy chops.

All of which makes him a perfect candidate for the Next Sessions series at Zanzibar Blue. The program is designed to spotlight lesser-known acts that might fall into the "talent deserving wider recognition" category of a jazz music poll.

"The initial idea was to give an opportunity to people who weren't local talent necessarily, but weren't big enough to get a weekend spot," explains Wendy Wolf, the club's marketing director.

Weekend gigs at Zanzibar Blue are generally reserved for performers who can command a $20-$25 cover and have built-in fan bases to help draw a healthy crowd. Meanwhile, until last fall the weekday spots had become formulaic, presenting local bands, most of which featured a vocalist, playing the same night of the week for a month straight.

Management wanted to shake things up and the Next Sessions series was born. "Some of the acts have been straight-ahead but others are more adventurous and they cross over into other genres," comments Wolf, who cites Alvik, a Prague-based outfit that fuses drum 'n' bass and hip-hop with jazzy grooves, as a Next Session selection that cut across standard jazz borders.

By adding adventuresome artists into the mix, Zanzibar management hopes to broaden the club's appeal. "Jazz tends to attract an older audience and we felt we needed to do something to cultivate a younger audience," Wolf says. "If you're bringing in younger artists and musicians doing something different and new, that can tend to attract a younger crowd."

The crowd at the Sands show was a mix of twentysomething couples, groups of tourists and conventioneers, as well as a sizable table of folks who clearly came especially to hear Christian make his first club appearance under his own name. His mom sold CDs and his manager snapped photos amid an assortment of cousins and friends. Their appreciative response helped to make for a festive vibe that lasted throughout the evening's two sets. Later, Sands called the whole experience memorable. "I've never played in a place like that. My last one was a bar/restaurant, and there was no stage. We were next to a table. So it was pretty cool playing on a stage."

Wolf notes that certain Next Session acts have strong credentials — like Poogie Bell, who appears on Aug. 11 — but are nevertheless not widely known. "Poogie's got an impressive resumé. He's been around for a while," she says. Indeed, Bell is a longtime session player and sideman who's worked with a host of notables including Marcus Miller, Erykah Badu, David Sanborn and Chaka Khan. However he's only recently taken to leading and touring with his own group.

And then there's Zach Brock, a 31-year-old violinist who leads an inventive modern jazz band called The Coffee Achievers. Brock falls in the middle in terms of time on the scene. Coming in from Chicago as part of a 12-stop tour, Brock is excited about being on the Aug. 18 Next Session slate. "For a club to take a chance on someone who is relatively unknown and a newer artist, to allow them to present their music in an honest way — not having to cater to alter their sets to fit a certain thing — is very encouraging. And I think ultimately it brings new blood into the mix."

The Next Session presents The Poogie Bell Band, Thu., Aug. 11, 8 and 10 p.m., $5, and Zach Brock & The Coffee Achievers, Thu., Aug. 18, 8 and 10 p.m., $5, Zanzibar Blue, Broad and Walnut sts., 215-732-4500.