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I think of it like this: If it's a chord tone, play the notes in the chord, otherwise play the relevant diminished chord. I thought Dick Hyman had a video on this, but all I could find was this one:

Thanks, Trombone Al! I was just experimenting with diminished chords today and where they work and where they don't, and this gives me another perspective and something to try.

Cathy

Barry Harris probably has the best explanation of all of this stuff on his web site. It's in a tutorial - not free, but it is information from someone who was there from the beginning ....

Yes, there's two methods of two-handed voicings on piano, and I will paraphrase from my book volume 5:

Method 1
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LH plays root and fifth
RH puts melody on top and nearest 3rd and 7th beneath it.
If melody note happens to be 3rd or 7th, double it an octave below

Method 2
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LH plays either root and third, or root and 7th, depending on the following:
* in stepwise or chromatic bass lines, use root and 7th
* in cadences of dominant chords (circle of fifths), alternate root and third/ root and 7th
* on mixed harmonies down the circle of fifths: root and 7th for all major, minor and half-dim; root and third for doms

RH: melody note on top.
3rd or 7th (whichever not played by LH) beneath
optional tension or chord tone beneath

Regarding walking bass line, you probably already know this, but keep in the mind the basic purpose of the bass is to establish the root and fifth of each chord, - these two tones are the chord center. Basic technique is to hit the root on the downbeat, the fifth or other basic chord tone on the weak beat