A Pianist's Touch: approaches to learning & practicing tunes

[...]practice four-way close voicings (1, 3, 5, 7) in the left hand, using inversions to voice lead between chords, while you play the melody in the right: [...]play two-handed open voicings of the chord, perhaps with the left hand playing shells or guide tones (3rds and 7ths), and the right hand playing other chord tones plus tensions, as if you were comping behind a vocalist or horn player stating the melody