10:1 - Ionic Mode

When & Where: I was listening to WITR 89.7 the other day (RIT's student-run radio station), and heard the song, "My Internal Din" by I Was Totally Destroying It. In the lyrics I heard a phrase I am unfamiliar with, which was "ionic mode."

"My internal din
           Pots and pans and stereo
                               Constant dissonance
                                            Conflicting with ionic mode"

Definition: According to thefreedictionary.com, ionic mode means, "an ancient mode, supposed to correspond with the modern major scale of C."

Level of Familiarity: If you haven't already guessed, I love music. I understood based on the lyrics that if dissonance was conflicting with whatever this ionic mode thing was, that it must mean that ionic mode has something to do with consonance. And, OK, it has to do with a particular type of scale! Although I have played violin for most of my life, I have never heard of it. We used the term "major scale," which is essentially the same thing.

Reflective Commentary: This is a very content-specific word that people who study music theory might be aware of. Outside of that, I don't see how it can be used. Not knowing what it was sort of impeded my understanding of what the lyrics of this song mean. Now I know! It is also referred to as Ionian Mode, in case anyone is interested:
  

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mode_%28music%29#Ionian_.28I.29